Everything BEING REWRITTEN
by The Ambiguous Case
Summary: I can't tell Yami anything until I figure out why I like him in the first place! But... what do I like about him?" Puzzleshipping, AU Alternate Universe. BEING REWRITTEN.
1. Anything but Ordinary

-blink blink- I'm actually posting a story on here. After a whole year! It's been so long... I feel like I let a lot of peoples down. XD I'm sure they're ok.

First YuGiOh fanfic, ever from me. XD

To be quite honest, I got the idea from my first day of high school today.... O-p

**Disclamer::** **I do not, nor will I ever, own YuGiOh or it's characters. They belong to their owner(s). I only own my horrible ideas and imaginary characters I create when I'm bored out of my mind.**

**Summary:: Yuugi Mutou is a freshman in high school. He is finally attending his first day and is bored the minute he walks in the class. But, after meeting a person named Yami, he might want to change his opinion. Puzzleshipping, AU**

**Warnings:: Puzzleshipping, cussing, and... really bad writing.**

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

(Note, this whole fanfic will be in Yuugi's POV.)

High school, huh? I'm really in high school now, aren't I? I guess I'm excited. Even though none of my friends are going to the high school I'm going to doesn't mean I have to sulk about it. It would be nice to know some people there besides my sister. And her boyfriend. But back to the topic, I'm just going to be the kid no one knows for a while. I'm okay with that. Perfectly okay with it.

The sun was slowly making it's way over the horizon as I checked the time on the dashboard in the car; it read 6:28. I've been sitting in my sister's black Hundai Elantra since ten minutes before, waiting for her to finish whatever she was doing in the house and drive us both to school. Why must girls take so long just to go to a building for six measily hours? I don't think that problem has been solved yet.

While waiting, I scanned the inside of my backpack and made sure I wasn't missing anything, which I wasn't. I tried to switch my cell phone to silent, but couldn't figure out how, so I shut it off and stored it in my pocket. I looked out the window and dozed off for a bit. I was shook out of it when I heard the car door next to me slam. I flicked my head towards the sound.

My sister put the keys in the ignition and turned the car on. "So, ready to go?" she asked me?

I replied to her, "Yeah, why not."

"You should be happier! You're finally starting high school!" She turned to me as she spoke, her blonde hair crimped with her bangs pulled back.

"It's only ninth grade, Arieru, you know," I said, resuming looking out the window.

Arieru shook her head. "If you say so, Yuugi."

She pulled out of her parking spot on the curb in front of the house and started driving down the road towards the school. I stared at the houses, cars, and pedestrians passing by out the window. I quietly sighed and we stopped at the stoplight.

"So the gym class just meets in the gym the first few days?" I asked, not once moving my head.

Arieru replied, "Yeah, I'm pretty sure. I'll show you how to get there from inside the school."

I didn't reply. Instead, I continued gazing at the outside, wondering what my life would be like now that I'm in high school. I could easily be the quiet smart kid in the back of the class, passing every class with a breeze and no one knowing who I am. Or I could just not care and make friends with every single person in the school and fail at everything. But that wouldn't help me, so the first option sounds great.

Before I knew it, the car was parked in a parking spot and the doors unlocked. I looked up and realized that we had arrived at the school. I grabbed my backpack and threw it over my left shoulder. Sighing, I opened the car door and stepped out. I leaned against the car, looking at the other students passing by, chatting as the went. I felt a small ping of jealousy, but I wasn't going to do anything about it. It just seemed... troublesome? Yeah, that'll work.

"Are you going to stand there? Come on, Yuugi!" Arieru called to me. I turned around to look at her. I nodded and followed her through the parking lot to one of the many entrances to the large school building. We passed many unfamiliar faces and teachers. Some students listening to iPods or texting before shutting them off and entering the school. The school cop wizzed by on a bike, students quickly shuffling out of the way of his path. I looked around at the scenes and took everything in.

Arieru suddenly said, "So what are your classes?" I gave her the schedual I had recieved in the mail a few weeks before. After studying it for a few seconds, she said, "Okay, your first and third class are here. Eight hundreds, right?" I glanced at the list of classes and room numbers before nodding. "Yup, they'd be here." It was an outside hallway with classes on either side. Teachers were standing outside of their designated classrooms, conversing amounst themsevles. A few students entered the classrooms, and a few more just hung outside while waiting for the teacher to show up.

We continued walking through a small crowd up a long, but with a small slope, ramp leading to more doors. When we walked through, there were more students. Some were trying to land a skateboard move, some girls were squealing and hugging each other and blabbing about how their summer was and how much they missed each other. Others were just hanging out.

"So through those doors," she pointed to the left, "is the gym. You just have to walk straight a little bit." Arieru looked at me. "You got all of this, right?" I nodded. She smiled. "Good!" She led me to more large doors and we walked inside. It appeared to be the cafeteria. "So this is the cafeteria." I'm psychic, aren't I? Sarcasm, I promise.

I nodded again, looking around a bit. She continued walking towards a crowded hallway, occasionally saying "hi" and hugging people I didn't know. She pointed to a few hallways and said that my classes in the three hundreds would be there. The bell rang suddenly to signal everyone that they had five minutes to get to class. She turned to me.

"Ok, let me show you where your homeroom class is," she said. Everyone had a homeroom class based on their last name just for the first day. We had to be there for an hour in the morning, then we had to go back at the end of the day for twenty more minutes.

"Hey, wait, where's room 131?" I asked.

She pointed down the hallway we were walking down. "You just walk down there, now let's go." I followed her and eventually ended up in front of a door.

"Okay, here's your homeroom," she said.

I nodded. "Thanks."

"No problem," she said over her shoulder as she left me behind. Students were still crowded around the door, so I assumed that the teacher had yet to unlock the door. Or arrive. Either works well in this situation.

I found a spot against the wall to lean on while I waited. I slid down to the floor and just sat there. I found a spot on the floor in front of my shoes and just stared at it. I didn't look up for a while. Although, for some reason, it felt like someone was staring at me. Yet, I didn't look around to check.

Then, a small lady with short blonde hair and a black and white dress appeared and unlocked the door, letting everyone inside the classroom. If I'm right, that was the teacher. I stood up and walked inside the class and found a seat second to last in the back, and second closest row to the teacher's desk. There was only one seat open next to me. I sat down and stared at the desk. I wasn't interested in the other students around me. Maybe another day. Just not today.

The bell finally rung, and the lady walked to the front of the room.

"Okay, people, I'm going to hand out your schedual cards now. You need to have these stamped by every teacher and have them returned to your last class. When I call your name, please come get your schedual," she said to the class as they quieted down. One by one she called names, and they took their scheduals to look over them, share with their friends, and whatnot.

After several names, she finally called, "Yuugi Mutou?" I stook up and walked at my own pace to the front of the room and grabbed my card. I quietly walked to my seat, looking at the floor. Just as I got in the mail, I had three honors classes; Language Arts I H, Geometry H, and Biology I H. Lovely.

Every name was soon called, and everyone was free to talk as they pleased. I stared at my card and studied it carefully to make sure there wasn't an error. After a while, I knew there wasn't, but I kept staring at it. A few minutes had passed, and I had started to feel lightheaded. It couldn't had been from a lack of breakfast, since I actually eat in the morning. I'm positive I'm not sick. Could it have been from nervousness? I was nervous? I didn't feel like that ten minutes ago. Why is it I'm getting nervous at a time like this? It just seemed impossible-

"Hey," a voice said from next to me on my right.

My thoughts were broken from this person, and I turned my head to see who had talked to me.

"H-huh?" Wow, good job on that first impression.

The person, well, guy, looked somewhat similar to me. Well, the hair at least. He looked way taller than me, and he has crimson-like color eyes instead of violet. I watched as he looked over my schedual. He didn't look like he was going to bully me or something.

"Yuugi, right? I'm Yami. Nice to meet you," he said, looking up at me. I blinked. I didn't expect this.

"U-uh, yeah, same to you..." I mumbled. He looked at my schedual once more.

"So, we both have first lunch, don't we? I'll look forward to that!" He smiled at me. I felt embarrassed that I didn't know what to say. Once again, he went back to checking my schedual. "So, you're a freshman? Man, it was fun being in the ninth grade. I'm in the tenth grade, so you know."

"Oh." That was all I managed to say.

"You don't talk much do you?" he laughed. I shrugged. "Hmm, I'll get you to talk, don't worry!" What's to worry about?

He continued to talk to me. "Okay, how about this; at lunch, I can introduce you to my friends!" I looked up at him.

"Aren't they all in the tenth grade, too? Won't I be the odd one out?" I said. He smiled.

"No, actually, there are other freshmans too! I promise you'll like them."

I sighed. "Umm, okay."

His face lit up. "Great! I'll try to find you!" With that, he went back to talk to one of his friends that had gotten the same homeroom as him.

I stared at my desk for the remainder of the homeroom.

I guess the rest of my day won't be as day I thought...

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

(Note: This is an AU fic! Alternate universe! Which means I can do whatever the hell I want! Because we all know Yuugi-kun doens't have a sister. It's actually MY sister, and I had no ideas, because I needed someone like her for the story, so here's my sister. XD But in this story, she isn't his sister, she's more of a really REALLY good friend that lives next door... Yuugi still lives with Grandpa, don't worry! X3 Oh, and Yami's eyes ARE red in the anime, if you watch the very VERY first season on YuGiOh, so NO COMPLAINING! XD)

Kurisuten: Yay! Chapter number one is done! I feel so proud of myself!

Ristuka: So basically, you got this WHOLE idea from YOUR first day of school?

Kurisuten: Actually, I came up with it in the car on the way to school.....

Ristuka: And it's based off your schedual? And classes? And everything?!

Kurisuten: ...Slightly... XD

Ristuka: That's.... interesting?

Kurisuten: So, I'll be updating every Monday! So you'll have to wait a whole week for the next chapter!

Ristuka: Waiting. EVERYONE'S favorite passtime.

Kurisuten: You're just pissed because I didn't remember to give you a cookie yesterday.

Ristuka: You promised me a cookie! TT-TT

Kurisuten: Yeah, yeah. I'll get you a damn cookie in a minute. Next chapter is granted more length! Review, minna-san!


	2. All the Right Reasons

Kurisuten: Oh gawd, I have such a low opinion for this story already.

Ritsuka: Oh, grow up, Angsty.

Kurisuten: JUST BECAUSE I REFUSE TO CHANGE MY MOOD ON dA JOURNALS FROM ANGSTY AND I ACT LIKE THE WORLD CONSIPRES AGAINST ME DOES NOT MEAN I SHOULD BE CALLED ANGSTY.

Ristuka: Uhh, ok? But hey, the story's not that bad! I mean, it's a pretty original idea and stuff....

Kurisuten: Are you just saying that?

Ristuka: Only slightly. Plus, a bunch of people favorited and subscribed to this story, and you got a couple positive reviews.

Kurisuten: Yeah, I guess you're right. Do the disclaimer, Loveless.

Ristuka: Oh no, not that again.

Kurisuten: It's a cute nickname!

Ristuka: It IS my name. As I was going to say, **Kurisuten Ichikish does not own YuGiOh or any stupid references she may make.**

Kurisuten: Why thank you, Loveless!

Ristuka: ...

(Note: About two percent of this story has something to do with school after this chapter. Unless notified. Then it won't be two percent. Then it would be about fourty-two percent. These are just estimates. So carry on with your lovey ansty friendy orangish story.)

Ristuka: Wtf? Orangish?

Kurisuten: Just... shut up. You people enjoy reading!

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

It had been a strange morning for me today. Not because I was drove here by an overenthusiastic 17 year old girl while listening to one of her C.D.s made by her WAY overly affectionate boyfriend or anything. Actually, I liked some of those songs, but that's way besides the point. It's not because I thought the school was huge until I figured out my way around it. Nor was it because of how incredibly short I am. It was because of this morning, during homeroom. That guy, who introduced himself as Yami, and the way he wasn't afraid to just walk up to me and start some random conversation, or how he invited me to hang out with him and his other friends. It's strange.

My mind had been hooked on this all morning. I didn't notice anything that went on, and I hadn't been paying attention to anything that had been going on. Which was very weird for me, considering I payed attention to almost everything that happened in a classroom. It's just... the way Yami had talked to me so naturally, like we were friends our whole lives, the way he looked so calm as he spoke... It made my head spin thinking about it. But the part that got me the most, was that he wanted me to hang out with him, even with him barely knowing me. Why did he want to be with ME? I'm just so... I don't know... plain? Boring? Uninteresting? I can keep this list going forever. He just... confuses me.

Confuses me so much, it makes me want to know more and more about him.

That's what gets me the most; the fact that Yami can be so confusing and yet, I still accept his offer to be with him today, at lunch. Which is... Oh my gosh, only five minutes until lunch?! Lunch started at 11:15, and it was 11:09 now. I was a minute off, but still.

Am I really going to go through with this? Should I really do this? I barely know him, and... and... It's weird, when you are the most confused about something, you can't come up with a reason why.

I really shouldn't.... I really can't... I-

The bell for lunch had rang. I had no time to even think about it.

Time is a bitch, isn't it?

I bulleted out of the classroom without a second thought. Even though I have no idea what I'm going to do about my current situation, my feet guided me to where Yami told me to meet him outside the cafeteria by the tallest tree. I was absentmindedly swerving through the taller students (And I'm not exaggerating...), trying to come up with an idea of what to do. But just what was I thinking? Survey says: NOTHING. I couldn't think of ANYTHING to say. Or do. Say or do.

The place was a whiles away from where my previous class was; it took four minutes to get there! But, it only felt like thirty seconds. I don't understand why I'm going through with this. I hardly know this guy. And wasn't I going to go out of my way to make no friends and focus on my schoolwork? Yeah, so why am I doing this?!

I stepped outside and saw about fifty students loitering outside the cafeteria as I looked around. I don't see Yami anywhere, so I'm just going to inside again now.

Oh, no, I spoke too soon. As I turned towards the cafeteria doors, I saw the tallest tree. And Yami was sitting right under it. I mentally kicked myself. And yet, I still walk towards him. He was all alone anyway, so I don't have to meet anyone else. Hopefully.

Yami suddenly looked up an in my direction. He sat up sraight and waved towards me. "Yuugi, hey!" he called. I managed a weak wave. I continued to walk a bit quicker in the same direction until I was right next to him.

"Hey, Yami," I said quietly, sitting down next to him. He smiled at me, and I weakly smiled back at him. He had a puzzled look.

"Oh come on, no spirit?" he laughed, nudging me. I made a small laugh. "So, it seems you won't meet anyone of my friends today," he sighed, irritated.

I cocked my head to the side. "Really? How come?"

"All have next lunch. So it's just me and you during lunchtime." Yami leaned his head against the tree, staring ahead of him.

I felt a ping of happiness in my gut. But, it wasn't because I didn't have to meet other people today. I think it was because it was just me and him during lunch. I can't understand why. I mean, I just met him! He's nothing more than an aquaintence at the moment. But... something about him draws me to him. What is it, though?

"Oh, okay. I'm fine with that," I threw out. I needed to keep talking to him. The longer the conversation, the more details I have to decide if I really want him to be my friend.

Yami playfully pushed my arm. "You act like I'm some stranger you just met!"

Oh, the irony of that sentence. I think he caught on. "Oh, you DID just meet me, duh!" He smiled at me and laughed. I had to smile back. He has a good sence of humor.

"So, you're not going to ask how my first day of school is going so far?" I asked happily.

Yami rolled his eyes. "That's boring! I'd rather get to know you better than know how stupid the teachers are," he replied.

Maybe I don't need to get to know him anymore. He seems like a great person. Before I can stop myself, I say, "So would I."

"That's good. Otherwise, this conversation would be just plain akward, you know?"

I nodded. "Yeah, I know."

"So, why don't you go first?"

"What?"

Yami laughed. "Tell me about yourself! That's what we were talking about before, weren't we?"

I smiled warmly. "Yeah."

For about ten minutes, we both talked about ourselves, like our hobbies, what we like, what we don't like, small stuff like that. It felt nice to finally get rid of the confusion I was feeling before. I liked talking to Yami. It makes me want to be more than an aquaintence. Although, I think that has already been accomplished.

After self-introducing ourselves, Yami asked me a strange question. It sorta happened like this...

"So, Yuugi, let me ask you something."

"Shoot."

"What do you look for in a person?"

I blinked. "What do you mean?"

"What qualities do you look for in a person? You know, to decide if you like them or not!"

"...What do you mean 'like'?"

"You know!"

"Oh, you mean to be someone's friend?"

"No, no! I mean when you _love_ someone!"

Woah, woah, what?? I hardly know you! Why are you asking me this? Well, he DID say he wanted to get to know me... Don't tell me he's going to try to get me a girlfriend at some point. Oh god, that would be embarrassing.

"W-what?? W-w-well, I guess... If they have a good sence of humor, if they're a kind person, not afraid to voice what they have to say, cute eyes......." I trailed off towards the end. I then realized I had been describing Yami! I'm really hoping he can't read minds.

Yami laughed. "I guess I'm none of those things, am I?" He put his hands behind is head and slouched against the tree a bit more.

None of those things? He was _all of the above! _Maybe he was just joking with me? I'm not going to ask, that's for sure.

"Well, what about you? What do _you_ look for?" I might as well interrogate him back.

Yami sighed. "Well, I want to be able to love them and trust them, knowing they won't stab me in the back. I want to be able to hug them and comfort them when they're at their worst." I stared up at him with stars in my eyes. Who knew he was the romantic type?

"Wow..." I said quietly.

"Oh," he said quickly. "And shortness is adorable," Yami added with a laugh.

Well, considering most females ARE shorted than him, that doesn't really narrow anything down. Hell, most MALES are shorter than him. Or maybe I'm just uber short. Still doesn't narrow anything down.

Before we knew it, the bell rang. We both stood up, and I was about to walk away. "Oh, hold on, Yuugi," he said. I turned around. He handed me a piece of paper. "Here."

I glanced at it. Numbers and hyphens. "Your phone number?"

"Yeah! Can I have yours, too?"

I blinked. "Sure, okay."

I ripped a piece of paper off the bottom of the paper he gave to me. Grabbing the pencil sticking out of my folder, I scribbled down my phone number as well. I handed it to him.

"I'll call you later, okay?" I asked Yami. He nodded. I smiled and waved at him as I walked away.

Maybe new friends is what I've been needing. Not what I've been having to avoid.

After school ended, I walked out of the school and to the back road, where Arieru said she's pick me up at. As I walked, I has so many thoughts going through my head. Amazing how Yami can help me think of new things to wonder. He's an interesting person, to say the least. I have so much more to say about him, though! I'm not even sure I know half of the things I want to say. He's just so.... different. I like that.

I spotted the car and I walked towards it. I opened the door and plopped in the seat. The driver smiled at me.

"So, how was your first day?" Arieru asked.

I smiled at her. "Better than I imagined."

She smirked. "Told ya so!"

"Oh shut up!" I said, laughing.

The second the car pulled on the curb, I shot towards the house. I unlocked the door and stepped inside. The house was empty for right now. I walked up the stairs and into my room. I dropped my backpack, my folder, and kicked my shoes off. I fell onto the bed and stared at the ceiling. I pulled Yami's phone number out of my pocket. I memorized it for a long time. I sighed.

"Should I call him now? Is he even home right now?" I thought out loud.

Just after I said that, the phone rang downstairs. I shot up and dashed downstairs. I picked up the phone and said, "Hello, Mutou residence."

"_Yuugi, that's you, right?_" The voice on the other line said. My face lit up.

"Yami? Yeah, it's me," I said happily. I heard a laugh on the other line.

"_Ok, good. I have a question for you then, Yuugi._"

"Sure, ask."

"_Me and my friends are going to be hanging out later at the park by the school. Wanna come with?_" he asked.

What? Is he serious? He is serious, isn't he? Oh god, he's serious. Answer him, dummy!

"Sure, I'd love to go!"

"_Cool! Alright, tell me your address and I'll come get you, alright?_"

After telling him my address and the time we'll be leaving, I hung upthe phone back on the wall. I slumped down the wall until I was sitting.

"I'm hanging out with Yami," I whispered to myself. "I really am."

I'm so happy right now. I feel great knowing I have a friend now, and I'm going to have more friends too.

But... what's this other feeling? It's giving my butterflies in my stomache. I've never had this feeling before. What is it? Please help me out, Yami.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Kurisuten: Not sure how long this is compared to the other chapter, but I'm done with it!

Ritsuka: Yeah, put it off until Friday, then rush it on Sunday. Great idea.

Kurisuten: Yeah, yeah, at least I try.

Ritsuka: You're right....

Kurisuten: Heehee! -peace sign-

Ritsuka: ...

Kurisuten: Be happier!

Ritsuka: No, screw you.

Kurisuten: Don't make me get Soubi out here.

Ritsuka: You wouldn't.

Kurisuten: SOUUUUBIIIII-

Ritsuka: OK, OK, I'LL BE HAPPIER.

Kurisuten: Haha.

Ritsuka: K-Kurisuten Ichikish will be posting chapter 3 next Monday, for those of you that care.......

Kurisuten: I'm such a good person!

Ritsuka: Y-yes, I V-VERY good p-person....

Kurisuten: Ja ne, minna-san!

Ritsuka: -waves-


	3. I Caught Fire in Your Eyes

Kurisuten: Three words. School. Effing. Sucks.

Ritsuka: It could be worse-

Kurisuten: You start talking about your brother being dead and your being stalked by some stupid whore bitch AND a pedophile and you mom wants to pretty much kill you, I will knock your head off your shoulders with Keiichi-kun's baseball bat.

Ritsuka: You're just pissed off that-

Kurisuten: NO, I'M NOT PISSED OFF. Actually, I'm pretty happy. I mean, after two months, I finally-

Ritsuka: You start talking about how you kissed your little aibou-kun after two effing months and go into a rant about how your mom and brother is an idiot for thinking he's cheating on you for that raver girl, I will.... I will........... EAT YOUR COOKIES.

Kurisuten: YOU WOULDN'T! Wait, yeah you would.

Ristuka: Winner, Ritsuka!

Kurisuten: Just do the disclaimer! I wanna get the story started!!

Ritsuka: If you say so. **Kurisuten Yamichi Ichikish does not own YuGiOh, any retarded references, or characters. **But if she did, imagine how many puzzleshipping fans would watch YuGiOh THEN.

Kurisuten: Oooh, yeah, that's so true! And nice touch with the "Yamichi" in it.

Ritsuka: Thank you! -hugs-

Kurisuten: Your welcome, Loveless!

Ritsuka: MY NAME IS-

Kurisuten: Enjoy your Puzzleshipping dateness!

Ritsuka: Oh yeah, Yuugi and Yami-

Kurisuten: I SAID ENJOY THE DAMN STORY ALREADY, YOU DON'T TALK ANYMORE.

(BTW, I'm using the Japanese names. I hate the English names. But if I forget and accidently write their English names, I'M SORRY!)

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Some people would probably call me hanging out with Yami a date. For those of you that do think that, ONE, I just barely met him today and right now, he's more on the borderline between an aquaintence and a friend, TWO, I don't even LIKE him that way, although I just kind of got lost in his eyes when we were talking earlier... I mean, his eyes are so pretty... H-hey, wait, what am I saying now?! Why is it when you're talking, you get stuck on another topic and you can't remember what you were talking about before. Because I completely forgot what I was going to say. Who's to blame, me being a scatterbrained blushing idiot or Yami's eyes..... those beautiful eyes.....

I have got to stop doing that.

I spent ten minutes sitting in the same spot, thinking about what had just happened. I had so many different things running through my mind; there was the fact that I don't have to be the loner kid this year anymore. Yami said that he had freshman friends too, right? There was also the fact that I am so lucky that I get to know so much about Yami in one day of meeting him. That thought made me smile. I like his character. He's funny, nice, a good person, has the most beautiful eyes I have ever seen.... I'm not kidding! It's like they draw me to him and they're just so....

I _really_ have to stop doing that!

Then there was a third thing.

What was I going to eat for dinner? Because I was starving.

The sudden sound of a rapping at the door snapped me out of my thinking. H-he wasn't here already, was he?!

"W-who is it?" I said loud enough for the person (who I knew was Yami anyway.) on the other side of the door to hear me.

There was a laugh. "Who do you think it is, Yuugi? The Easter bunny?"

Yup. Definately Yami.

"U-uh, coming..." I'm not sure he heard me. Either way I stood up to open the door. Time seemed to slow down as I unlocked the door, then turn the doorknob, then pulling the door open, revealing the tall person outside.

Holy... omigod. Did I just say "omigod"? It's just..... the way Yami looked! I could go on and on forever just to describe how he looks. In short, the most form-fitting black shirt, black leather pants, and his eyes just seemed to sparkle a lot more now than they did before... Maybe it's because of the way the sun reflected off of them... Gosh, they just looked... I can't even think of a word to describe them!

How does this always revert to how Yami's gorgeous eyes look?

"So, we're going or not, Yuugi?" he asked, leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed and a slight smirk placed upon his lips. I can't tell if my face turned any redder than it probably already was.

"W-well, umm...." I probably look so pathetic right now.

Yami's smirk only got wider. "You blush so easily, you know."

Yeah, and you're not helping either, Yami.

"C-can, you give me a minute? I-I just have to go change my shirt, i-if that's okay, you know....." I studdered, trying to find the exact words to play out.

Yami smiled. Yes, not smirked. Smiled. I can't tell which is prettier anymore, his eyes or his smile. "Alright, that's perfectly fine with me. I'll wait out here then."

And then, before I could stop myself, I suddenly said, "N-no, you can wait inside if you want!"

There was a long pause. Well, at least it seemed long to me. I just stared at him, and he looked at me back. He doesn't have an expression anymore. He just has a blank face. I just killed any chances with him, I'm guessing. Not that I like him or anything! Don't get the wrong idea!

Suddenly, Yami pushed himself off the doorframe and smiled again. "Alright! Thanks, Yuugi!" he said brightly. I just had to smile back.

"Okay then, I'll be back as quick as possible," I said, turning towards the stairs.

Yami shook his head. "Take as long as you want. I don't mind."

I swiftly ran up the stairs as fast as my legs would take me. I ran down the hall and into my room. I shut the door and slid down it to the floor. Yami. Is. In. My. House. Right. Now. That's the only thing I can think of right now. And before I had any time to think of his eyes or smile, I remembered that I had to change my shirt and go back downstairs. I pulled a random shirt out of the closet and studied it for a second. It was like the one Yami had, but I think it got mixed with the white clothes when they were being washed sometime and now it looks more blue. And it looked less tight. Before I had anytime to discard it, I pulled the shirt I had on now off and put the other one on. I studied my look in the mirror, then ran back downstairs to where Yami was waiting.

He looked up at me, looked over my outfit for a second, then smiled. "Okay, then, let's go."

"H-hold on, let me write a note for my grandpa that I'll be gone for a while, okay?" I said quickly. I didn't want to be grounded for being unknown for a few hours.

Yami nodded. I walked around to find the notepad in the kitchen and grabbed a pencil. Tearing a sheet out, I wrote that I'd be gone for a few hours and I'd be in the general area of the park unless I notify him otherwise. I put in on the fridge, a magnet holding it up, then ran back to the front door.

"Ok, now we can go?" Yami asked. I nodded. After walking out of the house, I locked the door and put my key under the mat.

Yami tried not to laugh. I looked at him with a stern look. "What's so funny?"

"Well, if you're ever not in your house, I can get in your house now," he said between giggles.

Once again, before I can ever control what I say, I blurtted out, "Actually, I keep it under there all of the time, even when I'm here." Where's the nearest wall? Or better yet, any car going sixty miles an hour on this road? No? Damnit.

Yami gave me a smirk. "Oh really? What if I'm a stalker? I can get in your house whenever I want now."

I burried my face in my hands to hide my blush. "Oh, stop it, you wouldn't do that," I muttered through my hands.

"You know, you must be blushing a whole lot," Yami suddenly said, no hesitation.

"Am not."

"Your ears look like tomatoes, Yuugi."

Damnit!

After a long silence (and it wasn't just me that thought that.), I finally looked up and told him, "Observant, aren't you?"

Yami laughed. "Yes, very. I also noticed how that shirt your wearing is inside out."

"W-what?!" I looked my shirt over. He's right! Ohhh, I feel like such an idiot! And if I wasn't already, I blushed even more. "What am I going to do....."

"Actually, I think it looks good, Yuugi," Yami said. I looked at him.

"Does it really?"

"Yeah! It looks like it fits you better like that."

...Did it really? Did he _really_ notice that?

I burried my face in my hands again.

Suddenly, there was a tug at my arm, pulling me back harshly. A voice cut through the air, a voice that sounded way too much like Yami, "Yuugi, watch out!"

I looked up only to see a car speed past me. The wind trailing behind it moved my bangs around the frame of my face. I stared straight ahead, petrified. Yami turned me towards him. His face held an emotion in it.... was that worry?

"Yuugi, are you okay?!" he asked, just as scared as I was. "You're okay, right?!"

I just nodded, a blank look in my eye. "Y-yeah, I'm okay..."

Yami sighed and shut him eyes. "Oh thank god." He smiled again. "Next time you try to hid your blush, try paying attention to everything else too, okay?"

I nodded again. "O-okay."

We crossed the street and walked a little ways further down, and we had made it to our destination. Which as the park, if anyone payed attention to the note.

I looked around. It wasn't the kind of park with the playgrounds and the little kids playing in the small sandbox. It was a big field of grass with a stone path along the side. There were benches and tables for picnics and stuff. There were tall trees along the outside and a few in the middle of it all. It looked so pretty....

I also saw a group of kids sitting at one of the tables. I couldn't tell if they were Yami's friends or not.

I got my answer when Yami lead me towards the group. Everyone looked up to greet him as we approched. He pulled me next to him and started introducing me.

"So, this is Yuugi, the one I was talking about before," he said casually. I stood as close to Yami as I could without actually pressing myself against him. I was probably blushing, but I was too busy studying the faces of the group to even notice.

"U-uh, hi..." I managed to say. It was probably way too quiet.

A blonde male started talking. "I'm Jounochi, kid. Nice to meet cha." He's got a Brooklyn accent. That was the first thing I noticed.

A guy with brown hair fixed into one spike at the front of his head spoke sitting next to Jounichi said, "Name's Honda. Nice to know you."

Then there was a brunette girl that spoke. "I'm Anzu. Pleased to meet you." Well, at least she seems nice enough.

Then across the table, there was a guy with rediculously messy platinum blonde hair and the darkest tan I had ever seen. "I'm Marik."

A guy with equally messy white hair spoke and said, "Bakura."

Then, a boy that looks like Bakura, but way shorter and he looks like he actually combs his hair said, "My name is Ryou. I think I had you in my Honors classes, if I'm correct."

I nodded. "Yeah, I think I remember you." I smiled, and he did the same.

Yami then led me toward an empty spot big enough for two people at the end of the table on the side with Jou, Honda, and Anzu. Everyone was talking, and I felt left out a little bit. But it was interesting to listen to their conversations. Jou and Honda were talking- I mean, fighting, about something. Bakura and Marik were laughing about something that I dare not ask what. Ryou was leaning against Bakura and looking like he was asleep. And of course, Yami and Anzu were talking about something school related. I didn't really want to talk much, so I studied the pattern on my hand. I was absentmindedly swaying slightly. I was a bit drowsy from waking up so early and getting no sleep the night before.

I was suddenly nudged by someone, and there was no way it was Yami; the hand seemed too small. I looked up to see who poked me. Anzu was looking at me, so I assume it was her.

"So, Yuugi, how do you like school so far?" she asked. I stared at her.

"Actually, I don't like talking about school."

Anzu giggled. "Join the club. Me either."

I smiled. She seemed like the nicest out of all of these people. Well, if you don't count Yami, of course.

"But I really like your shirt like that! You pull off the inside-out-shirt look really well!" she said happily. I looked up an Yami, and he just looked at me with a teasing look that said, 'I told you so'.

"T-thanks!"

Anzu sighed, but not a bad sigh. A happy sigh. "Yami was right; you blush way too easily!"

Blushing more, I looked up at Yami with an irritated look. Yami just winked at me.

Anzu smiled and starting to try to break the fight between Jou and Honda up. In the meantime, I looked up at Yami. He looked back.

"So, how do you like them?" he asked.

"Who?"

"Our friends! Were you paying attention, or staring at me?" he said jokingly.

I stopped myself before I said, "Both."

And then I realized he said "OUR friends".

After a while, Jou and Honda left, then Anzu, then Marik, then Bakura got bored without Marik, so he shook Ryou up and they left, too. It was just me and Yami. The sky was getting dark, and I was more tired than I was before. Yami stood up.

"Come on, Yuugi. Want me to walk you home?" he asked politely.

I suddenly looked up at him. "Please?"

Yami laughed. "I don't mind! My way home is the same way as yours. Just have to walk a bit further down the road."

I smiled and stood up. I walked next to Yami as we left the park. My legs felt weak from being so tired, so I tried holding onto Yami so I could catch up. I think he noticed.

"Can you catch up, or are you too tired?" he asked. I shook my head. He shrugged and kept walking. I started to lag behind a bit, and I couldn't really stand up straight. Yami turned around and waited for me to catch up.

"Thanks, Yami," I breathed. Yami walked as slow as I was so I wouldn't fall behind him. The sky grew darker and darker. The tempurature also dropped with it. I shivered only slightly, but it was enough for Yami to notice.

"Are you cold, Yuugi?" he asked. I shook my head.

"No, I'm not." I kept walking with him. Then, I noticed something drape around my shoulders. I gripped the fabric. Is it Yami's jacket? The one he'd been carrying around? I pulled the jacket around my shoulders tighter. Yami smiled softly and looked ahead. When we stopped at the first stoplight, I felt my legs want to collapse.

"Y-Yami..." I whispered. Yami glanced at me.

"Yeah, Yuugi?"

I felt my legs tremble. "I can't walk anymore... I'm really tired..."

Yami said, "Really? Are you sure you can't? Your house isn't that far from here. Think you can make it that far?"

I shook my head. "N-no, I can't, Yami... I-if I could just sit down f-for a minute-"

Before I could finish my sentence, I was being picked up by Yami. He had one arm under my upper back and the other under my knees. I looked at him.

"Y-you sure you can c-carry me? A-am I too heavy?" I asked.

Yami shook his head. "No way! I've lifted way heavier things than you. Don't worry, okay?"

I just nodded and leaned my head on his chest and tried to sleep until I got home. First thing I'm doing when I get home is sleeping.

Well, or I could sleep now. Somewhere along the way, I drifted to sleep.

It only seemed like ten seconds I had been sleeping. By the time I woke up, Yami was trying to carefully put me down on the porch and that I wouldn't fall. I was still half-asleep though, so I was a bit unaware of what was going on. Yami reached under the mat, grabber the key, and unlocked the door. He replaced the key and pulled me inside. I'm guessing my grandpa hadn't come back yet from wherever he went. Yami grabbed my hand and led me up the stairs until we reached the hallway.

"So, which is your room?" Yami asked. I tiredly pointed to a door, and that's where he led me to. He opened the door and flicked the light on. I dragged myself to the bed and fell onto it, almost falling asleep again.

Yami's voice cut through the air, but in a comforting way. "You want me to leave you here, then?" I nodded. "Are you sure? You're not even going to change out of your clothes?" I shook my head. "Okay, then, I guess I'll see you tomorrow. Bye, Yuugi!" Yami said quietly before shutting off the light and closing the door. Almost immediately, I was asleep once again.

Falling asleep was something I always had a problem with. Although, once in a while, like tonight, I can easily fall asleep within fifteen minutes of my head hitting the pillow. But there was something I never got a day without. That was staying alseep. I could be extremely tired and fall asleep in minutes, but I could never stay asleep for at least more than three hours. Then, the process of difficulty falling asleep returns. It's just... the way I am, I guess.

Tonight was no exception.

It was about eleven twenty-one now. I was about to go back to sleep until I realized I was still in my clothes. I wonder why I was wearing a different shirt than the one I went to school in. I don't remember wearing this shirt today. I stood up, and I noticed I was wearing my shoes, too. That's weird, I remember taking them off. Completely forgetting about sleeping, I went downstairs to go eat something, because I was hungry. The house was still dark, so grandpa never came home, I guess. I looked at the front door and noticed a note stuck to the door. Flipping the nearest lightswitch, I took the note off and read it.

_"Yuugi,_

_I'm going to be gone tonight and tomorrow, but I will be back the day after. Take care of the house while I'm gone._

_P.S. I got your note you wrote. It's nice you're making friends already!_

_-Grandpa"_

And then I remembered everything that had happened today. With Yami. Today. And I was with him. With Yami. Alone. With him.

This must all be a dream.... Yeah, just a dream. I'll wake up tomorrow, and I'll go to school. Yeah, that's it...

I tiredly trudged up the stairs and entered my room once again just to crash on the bed. Still laying down, I kicked my shoes off of my feet and made sure my alarm clock as on. I then allowed myself to just fall asleep.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

The next morning, my alarm woke me up, but I wanted to sleep through it. There was no way I was going to wake up. I'm too tired, and I'm finally getting my sleep, damnit.

Eventually, I had no choice but to get up. Six eighteen. Great. I didn't get a chance to shower either. I could just stay home today, but it's the second day of school. I couldn't just stay home. Could I?

Deciding against staying home, I got ready for school as quick as I could, but I was just so tired and I didn't want to move. I walked down the stairs to find something to eat or I was going to starve. I ate nothing yesterday, and I was going to eat something. The second I walked down to the kitchen, there was a knock at the door. What was Arieru thinking, going to school so damn early?

I walked to the door and turned the knob. It didn't open. I tried again. Nothing. I realized that I needed to unlock the door first. Slow morning for me. I unlocked the door and opened it. I rubbed my eye and yawned.

"Arieru, why are you going to school so early today?" I said as I yawned.

A voice that was nothing like Arieru laughed. "I don't know who that is, but I'm guessing you are really tired, huh?"

I focused my eyes and saw Yami on the porch. I was way to tired to react, so I said, "Oh, good morning, Yami. Wha'cha doing here so early?"

"Well, I thought we could walk to school this morning, since we both walk the same way, and I have to walk by your house to get to school, so I just decided to take you with me!" he answered.

"M'kay... wait inside while I get my stuff." I yawned again and walked back inside up the stairs to get my backpack and shoes. I shut the door on my way out of the bedroom and dragged myself back down the stairs. I walked into the kitchen instead, though. Yami followed me, wondering what I was doing.

"Yuugi...? What are you doing?" he asked.

"I'm hungry, and I didn't eat yesterday."

"We can get something on the way, now come on!" Yami said. He laughed a bit before dragging me out the door. I locked the door and we crossed the yard to the sidewalk. As we walked, I looked up at him.

"You know, you know where the key is to my house, so you can come in the house whenever you want if I'm there," I said tiredly.

Yami looked at me back. "Really now?" I nodded.

"Really."

Yami smiled. "Okay then."

I smiled too. Yami was just the best person ever. Especially with those eyes of his... They're just the most beautiful pair of eyes I had ever seen in my entire life...

...I still want to know how anything can be turned into a conversation about Yami's eyes.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Kurisuten: Chapter 3, done! And way longer than before!

Ritsuka: That's good that you're keeping up with your story now.

Kurisuten: Thank you, thank you.

Ritsuka: No problem!

Kurisuten: But I am sooo tired....

Ritsuka: Say anything about P.E. being an effing hellhole and made your legs sore, then you decided to kiss your aibou-kun and he gave you a sore throat then there was a fire in the school and you were bored so you fell asleep on your aibou-kun's shoulder for ten minutes and you STILL deny it, then I will...... umm........ EAT THE DELICIOUS FLUFFY PINK CUPCAKE OF REDUNDANT HAPPINESS!

Kurisuten: NUUUU, YOU MUSTN'T!

Ritsuka: I WILL.

Kurisuten: -sniff sniff- Fine. Review kitties!

Ritsuka: Are you implying that you expect _cats_ to review this story?!

Kurisuten: I could be.

Ritsuka: -facepalm-

(I uploaded this chapter early! That's because I gave up on updating every Monday, and now I'll update whenever I finish a chapter! Review lovely peoples!)


	4. Still Doll

Kurisuten: ...I am so sorry this is late. And this chapter is so short, too. I've just been soooooo busy.

Ritsuka: Doing what? Trying to write "I like yaoi" in Japanese with Hiragana characters?

Kurisuten: Actually, I only had to look up one Hiragana character to write it. Not that hard.

Ritsuka: Sorry I asked. Anyway, what have you been doing? Tell these people your stupid reasons.

Kurisuten: The only stupid reason was buying the first four volumes of Gravitation and obsessiong over it. Other than that, I've been doing homework. Who gives homework over the weekends?!

Ritsuka: Welcome to high school.

Kurisuten: Shut up, sixth grader.

Ritsuka: ...Yeah.

Kurisuten: I am super sorry that this took so long to get out, and the chapter is the shortest yet. I promise, no other chapter will be this short ever again!

Ritsuka: Pft-

Kurisuten: Say anything and I knock your head off your shoulders. Do the damn disclaimer.

Ritsuka: K- **Kurisuten Yamichi does not own YuGiOh or any of its characters. S-she only owns her ideas and whatnot.**

Kurisuten: Pft.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Have you ever been up during the middle of the night and noticed how dead everything is? You know how much quieter everything is, and the roads are completely baren? You know how eerie the streets are when the streetlights are on? What about when the power goes out, and the whole street is pitch black? But most importantly, you know how all of the little things you usually wouldn't worry about during the daylight hours, suddenly become your worst fears? I know all of these feelings.

One of the things I would never worry about in the day is being alone in my house. If the front and back doors are locked and there is at least one source of sound, I never have to worry. Hell, even without sound, if the doors are locked I'm fine. But at night, it seems like you have every reason to be scared. Just the way the silence settles makes the atmosphere seem uncomfortable. And the fact that's basically pitch black doesn't help, either. Once you hear even the slightest of noises, your heart skips about three beats.

But even that is the last thing on my mind.

The first thing is Yami.

What I find bizzare is the fact that this guy has been the one thing I can't get to leave my mind. Honestly, he's just my friend. That's it! I swear! Nothing else. But then why can't I get him to leave my mind? What is it about him that makes me constantly think about him? The fact he resembles me? His eyes? Hell, his whole face? Him altogether? I might never get that answer. Yami is like my drug. Wait, that was a horrible thing to compare him to. Whatever it may be, I have to quit being scared before I get myself sick over it. The best thing for me to do right now is try to sleep.

But how? It's been forever since I tried going to sleep. I checked the clock. 3:41 a.m. Yup. Five hours already. I have not fallen asleep once yet.

Everything that happened this morning makes me both blush and slaps me in the face because of how embarrassing it was (No, I was not literally slapped in the face.). I- I don't know what happened. I just felt sick all of a sudden, and-

I'm going to have to explain this, aren't I?

Yami and I were half-walking-half-running to school and had no time to stop by one of the food places for something to eat so we didn't have to starve all day. Gradually, I started to feel sicker and sicker, but I thought I could make it to school and start to feel much better as the day went on. Although, three-fourths of the way there, and I'm pretty sure Yami noticed this before I did, my face just drained of color and I felt extremely dizzy, and I was positive I almost fainted. So, no sappy-lovey crap involved, Yami brought me home and I didn't go to school.

I feel so embarrassed about that.

Mostly because Yami probably has the impression I'm a weak petite boy that belongs in elementary school. Which he probably DOESN'T think that, but it had to have crossed his mind for even a second.

I turned over to my other side and faced the wall. I just stared at it, seeing if I could eventually burn a hole into it. Burn a hole into it and crawl inside it and stay there. That would be my place in the wall. No one could see me, but I could witness everyone and everything else.

I flipped back to the side I was laying on before. I wish someone would comfort me at night, so I wouldn't feel so alone. I've learned that thoughts are defenceless at killing the loneliness. Because in the end, you're still alone.

I turned onto my back and stared at the pitch black ceiling. Perferably, I'd like none other than Yami to comfort me. He seems to be the only one that can calm my thoughts down. It's strange how I'm so obsessed with him subconciously, no matter how much I deny it.

But truthfully, I don't want him to leave my mind.

I faced the wall again. This wasn't some stupid love story or whatever where he stands outside my window and throws rocks at it to get me to go outside to see what he wanted. He wasn't going to stand on my front porch all night and wait for me to open the door. He wasn't even going to call at four in the damn morning. I knew all of these facts well, and I didn't mind. Because those scenarios are supposed to be in stories about two people that can't get their mind off them.

This is not a story. This is real life.

I feel so stupid for thinking that he actually would do that. It's only the second (third, technecally) day that he's known me. And plus, he wouldn't like me this _that_. That one girl- I'm pretty sure her name is Anzu- is probably Yami's grilfriend. That's probably true, anyway.

But I don't want it to be.

I just don't know why I wouldn't want it to be true.

I turned on my back and silently had a conversation with the ceiling. There's no reason to worry, a voice told me. And I'm starting to think it's right.

Turning one last time on my side, back to the wall, I was granted into dreaming for the first time in a while.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Kurisuten: That wasn't horrible... BUT I HAVE WRITER'S BLOCK! Think of this a filler. Even though it WILL have a small effect on the future chapters.

Ritsuka: If you find out how.

Kurisuten: OH YEAH, I ALMOST FORGOT TO TELL YOU GUYS!

Ritsuka: Oh, gawd, she's actually going to do it...

Kurisuten: I NEED you guys to answer this for me! **Should I or should I not put a "mild" (depending on if I'm not too scared to type it) lime scene in a later chapter?**

Ritsuka: I hope they say no.

Kurisuten: Whyyyy? I've already thought it out! I want the reviewers to tell me if I should ot not though. If they don't then why should I type it, right? BUT I REALLY REALLY WANT TO! I mean, I have NEVER typed up a lime scene before, and truthfully, I look up "M" fics here when I get bored.

Ritsuka: ....Why?

Kurisuten: Don't ask me, I dunno. BUT TELL ME IF I SHOULD OR NOT YOU GUYS! I hope you all agree I should! X3

Ritsuka: -sigh- Oh whatever.

Kurisuten: Next chapter will be a lot longer, I promise! Ja ne, minna-san!


	5. Things I'll Never Say

Kurisuten: -sobbing- I-it was so hard to w-write this chapter...

Ritsuka: Oh gawd, what woes have you brought upon yourself this time?

Kurisuten: Someone got a new vocabulary.

Ritsuka: What's wrong with you?

Kurisuten: M-my aibou-kun b-b-broke up with meeeeeeee......... And I-I'm super upsettt.... R-Ritsuka, help meh please!

Ritsuka: Aww, poor you! Are you okay?

Kurisuten: -happy- I am now! I just read all of my new reviews, and they were all so encouraging! They were the ones to help me start writing again! And so were all of the people that favorited and story alerted this story! Even the people that read this story! You guys all helped me to get my fingers on these keys and write the rest of the story! I love all of you guys!

Ritsuka: Yeah, so do I. You guys got her to stop crying.

Kurisuten: Yeah, yeah. Loveless, the disclaimer, if you will.

Ritsuka: **Kurisuten Yamichi Ichikish does not own YuGiOh, its characters, the song she bases each chapter on, or me, Ritsuka. **And she doesn't own her aibou-kun anymore either.

Kurisuten: Y-you're horrible! -sobs-

Ritsuka: Oh, great.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Eventually, two weeks went by in the blink of an eye. No horrible, embarrassing incidents happened either, lucky me. Well, I guess the only thing that was a little embarrassing was bumping into Yami after school and dropping all of my stuff and then falling against Yami and made him fall to the floor with me pretty much on top of him.

Ok, fine, that was _really_ embarrassing.

But other than that, there was absolutely nothing else. And I can honestly say that Yami has gone from being an aquaintence, to a friend, to what is now my best friend. I'm not afraid to talk to him anymore. I can randomly bring up the subject of whether cupcakes are better than muffins (which they so are) and not feel like I said the most stupid thing I could possibly say. In fact, I brought that up yesterday and it turned into an entire debate.

Cupcakes won, if any of you were wondering.

Also, when we hang out with all of our other friends, I'm not scared to start talking to them, nor do I feel nervous. Except Marik and Bakura. They're just a bit.... freaky. But I've been talking with Ryou a lot more, and he came over to my house once or twice because of Geometry homework. Stupid fat turtle teacher really can't explain anything to where we understand. Gotta think of us too, you know.

Anyway, I told my grandpa the day he came home about my new friends, and he's thrilled! He's glad that I was making friends already. And so am I. Because of my new friends, I am actually passing every single class with A's. High A's. I even have a higher self-esteem now! I can walk out of the house to school feeling good about myself. I'm ten times more optimistic, and leave the house more often. Heck, I've hardly talked to Arieru since the first day of school! I'm sure she understands that I've been walking to school to Yami in the mornings. And on the way home. And hanging out with him on weekends. And talking on the phone with him every hour of the day.

Oh, yes. On the subject of Yami, I still haven't gotten over the "school-girl crush syndrome." He is still the only thing that never ceases to leave my mind. B-but I swear I don't like him more than a friend! T-there's no way! _No way!_

.....Okay, maybe just a little, _little_ bit.

Wait, did I just say that I liked Yami?

Maybe the lingering summer heat has been getting a bit too much to my head. Or that stupid fat turtle teacher's horrible smell. Or something to make me say that!

But then again... he's the only thing on my mind, I'm STILL obsessing over those crimson eyes of his, and I hang out with him every weekend so far.

Okay, fine, I might like him. But I will get over it. In fact, I'll get over it right now!

Now that I've just wasted my life trying and failing at the same time, I might as well just stop being in denial. But I don't like him that much! Though there is a possibility of me having a really really small crush.

And there I go arguing with myself again.

I'll stop boring you now.

I woke up to the sunlight pouring in from my window. I squinted my eyes and looked at my alarm clock. 10:23. Good. Ten hours of sleep. Looks like I can stay awake today. It was a Sunday, so no worries about school today! I threw my legs over the side of the bed and dragged my feet to the door and turned the knob. Pulling the door open, I was immediately entranced by a smell. A smell that kind of smelled like breakfast. Specifically eggs and bacon. And... was that toast? Does toast even smell? Maybe it's just the toaster...

My eyes widened in delight, and I bolted down the stairs into the kitchen. And I was right! There was the eggs, the bacon, toast, my grandpa, and Yami-

Wait, a minute. Go back a little bit? _Yami_ is here?! Sitting in my kitchen?! RIGHT NOW?

"Well, good morning there, Yuugi," Yami laughed. I stared at him for the longest time yet. My mouth opened, but no words came out. I was completely dumbfounded by this. What. Is. He. Doing. Here?!

My grandpa laughed. "We thought you'd be sleeping all morning!" Still no words I could say at the moment. He continued. "Yami came by about a half an hour ago, wondering if you would want to spend the day with him today."

Yami nodded. "I thought I'd just stay here most of the day, since there's no one at my house today."

I tried to say something, but I don't think it came out too right. "O-oh, I- uhh... W-well, e-eh..." I could feel my face heat up over the current situation.

"Well, I got breakfast almost done, in case you were hungry, Yuugi," Grandpa said, saving me from having to say anything.

I nodded rapidly and took a seat next to Yami. I could feel him staring at the side of my head. I turned to look at him.

"Y-yeah?" I ask.

Yami just laughed quietly. "So this is what you look like in the morning."

Blushing like crazy, I flicked my head back and looked at the table. As if this wasn't embarrassing enough, Yami makes a comment about how I look when I wake up! Whoever's the guy that runs fate, why must you be so cruel to me? What have I done to deserve this?

Not that I don't mind Yami being here.

After the most _akward_ morning with the most _akward_ breakfast and the most _akward_ conversation, I had hurried to get dressed and get my hair to look decent so I could head out that front door with Yami for a day better than last weekend. The sun was not too hot today, either.

"So, Yami, what are we doing today?" I asked, looking up at him.

Yami stretched. "Not sure. What do you want to do?"

I smirked. "If I don't know what we're going to do, then it's only natural to ask, 'Wat tee eff arr wee doin todaiiii'?"

Yami looked at me with a confused smile. "So are you suggesting that you were drunk when you asked that?"

I swatted at his arm. "Why would I be drunk?!"

"See how angry you are? It's a side effect of the alcohol inside of your bloodstream going through that strange brain in your head!" Yami poked the top of my head. I flinched and hit his arm again.

"I am not drunk!" I yelled at him. I was still smiling the whole time though. It's hard to keep a straight face with the strangest argument in the history of ever.

"And there's another side effect! Mindless agression!" Yami turned his head slightly toward me and smirked. I sighed rather loudly. Yami just laughed.

After a few seconds, I gently pulled on his arm. "So, where are we meeting Anzu and Jou and all them?"

Yami looked at me, straight-faced. "Who said anything about them?"

I blinked. I don't get what he was saying. Then, suddenly, like a bomb just went off in my brain, my eyes widened and I blushed heavily. "You didn't invite them?!" Yami shook his head. "It's just us?!" Yami nodded his head.

Oh my gosh, are you kidding me?! I'm going to be alone with _Yami_?! _Yami_ of all people! Me! Alone with him! All day! Just us......

Doesn't this count as a date then?!

"Yuugi."

That means I'm on a date with Yami! Should I be happy or collapse and repeat over and over again about how this is a dream and plead to wake up?

"Yuugi..."

What the hell am I supposed to do?! I've never been on a date before! What am I supposed to do about this?!

"Yuugi!"

I turned my head towards Yami.

"Umm... you've been trying to get my attention of a while, haven't you...?"

Yami nodded.

...Do I space out that much?

"So, what is it, Yami?"

Yami stopped walking, and so did I. Yami took in a deep breath, looked at me, and said...

"Why don't we go back to my house?"

Blink once. Blink twice. Blink a third time. The barrier of silence was suddenly shattered.

"Are you _serious?!_" I shrieked.

Yami nodded, rubbing his ear. "Totally serious."

I stared at him for a while. I took in a big gulp of air. It was about time I said something.

"Sure, why not? Let's go!" I said, grabbing Yami's hand with a smile. When he smiled back, I felt like melting inside. That smile and those eyes are going to be the death of me one day. Either that or I'll blush so much I'll get a heat stroke.

"Yuugi, you are a really energetic person," Yami commented. I looked at him.

"You think so?"

He smiled and nodded. I might as well wear a permenant blush on my face, because it never seems to go away.

We both started to continue to walk forward to the direction of Yami's house. I didn't know where it was, so Yami was leading us both there. I was more of following him there.

Something had just occured to me.

I never let go of Yami's hand.

And whether Yami notices or not, I'll never let go.

It was a pretty quiet walk. If, well, you don't count the sounds of cars passing, dogs barking, and the sound of me running into a pole. Yes, I ran into a lightpost. Face first. And the reaction? Me realizing where I was, Yami asking repeatedly if I was okay, me relplying that I was every single time, and Yami letting go of my hand. But, oh well, I run into a pole and don't cry about that, so I'm supposed to cry over Yami letting his perfect hand let go of mine? I think not.

Technecally, I was walking next to Yami. To me, he was walking faster than me, so I was lagging behind slightly. Either way, I was staring up at the best angle of the profile of Yami's perfect face. And, no, I'm _not_ going to make a comment on his beautiful, amazing, mysterious... Ok, you know what, I'm not going to make a comment on his eyes. Like I just did...... Just ignore that, if you will.

And now I forgot what I was going to say. Thanks, Yami. Thanks a bunch.

Not too much longer later, Yami and I arrived at the front door to his house. I'm guessing he doesn't care much about robbers and murderers and such, considering he opened the door no problem. No need to unlock the door first. Upon entry in the house, there was no light to allow sight, with the exception of the light spilling in from the opened door, but even that didn't grant much sight. I half expected the lights to be turned on, and the house would look like a twister hit it not too long ago. I'm not really sure why.

Yami swung the door shut, and the whole house was pitch black. There was no light to illuminate the house or anything. Holding my arms out, I tried to find Yami in the darkness. I collided with a figure that was probably Yami. It felt like Yami. It smelled like Yami- wait a minute... Ignore that, please!

"Yuugi, that's you, right?" a voice that sounded exactly like Yami said.

Studdering, I said, "W-what? Y-yeah, it is."

A sigh was heard. "Okay, that's good. Stay here, and I'm going to go turn the lights on."

"What do you mean?" I asked, puzzled.

"The switch to turn on the power in the house is in the basement. So I'm sorry about the darkness for the moment. I'll be right back," Yami explained quickly. Then, as quickly as it was found, the feeling of Yami and the warmth of his body left. My arms went cold and I wasn't conforted by company anymore. I searched for the wall and sat down against it. I drew my knees to my chest, wrapped my arms around my ankles, and rested my head against my knees. It was so dark around me that I can't even tell if or if not I'm blinking. The atmosphere was thick with an eerie tension. I was vulnerable. Anything could attack me right now, especially not being able to see my surroundings. Even Yami, this being his house and he knows his way around it, could be planning how and when he would kill me. Which wouldn't happen, but it was an example.

I flinched as light flooded the room with no warning. Rubbing my eyes, I lifted my head. I didn't look around yet, as I was still trying to get used to the lighting. Yami came into view and walked toward me. He held his hand out to help me up. I gratfully accepted his hand as he pulled me up to me feet. Balencing myself so I wouldn't fall forward, I exhaled, still a bit sleepy.

"Thanks, Yami," I said, smiling up at him.

Yami smiled back. "No problem!"

I took a step back and took my first look around the house. It was actually a neat, tidy house. The walls and floor looked a plain beige, the floor being darker than the walls, and there wasn't much furniture. There was a small couch placed in the center, a chair in a corner by the window, the window being accompanied by tan marquisette curtains, an average sized wooden coffee table placed in front of the couch, a small television on the back wall in front of the couch as well, and a small array of pictures in frames placed in randomized places on the walls. As plain as it was, it was the kind of house that made me feel like I was really home for the first time in my life. Even though I have a house that I live in. It's a metaphor of some kind, okay?

"So, Yuugi, what do you want to do?" Yami asked me. Then, under his breath, I swear I heard him say, "As if there was really anything to do here."

I looked at him. "There is nothing to do here." It wasn't a question. It was a statement.

"Yup," Yami clicked his tounge, "Nothing to do whatsoever."

I pulled my face into a pout. "What are you implying? Are you trying to tell me something you want to do?"

Yami looked at me with a puzzled look. "What are you talking about, Yuugi?"

"As if you don't know."

"What are you talking about?"

"But I know what you're talking about."

"What am _I_ talking about?"

I smirked. Just keep going with the conversation a little more. "Well, I know that _you _want me to go to your room with you"

Yami blinked. "W-what?"

"And I know that _I _would oh-so-gladly accept your offer."

"Umm, Yuugi, what are _you_ implying?"

"And _you_ probably never thought this far, since you thought that I would be blushing too much to answer you."

"Yuugi?"

"But, luckily for you, _I _know what I want to do with you."

Yami didn't answer right away, so I didn't wait for him to answer.

"And _I _think that you would agree so much with what I want to do with you."

"Yuugi, y-you mean... you..." Yami, for once, studdered and didn't know what to say.

"You would be right. Yami-_kun."_ I smirked after I called him 'Yami-kun'. Maybe it would be funnier if I said '-sama' instead. Oh well.

"So... you want to do _that?"_ he said quietly, trying to emphasize what he was talking about.

I widened my eyes in fake shock at him and gasped. "Yami, I didn't know you had such a dirty mind! I just meant that we could talk! Gosh, Yami." I shook my head.

Yami blinked a few times. I finally couldn't hold it in anymore and I started laughing. A lot. Yami must be a good sport, because he started laughing a little too.

"Yuugi, that was a horrible prank!" Yami said between laughs.

"It wasn't a prank! I was just talking."

"Well, you weren't _serious_."

"I was too serious! Obviously, I'd rather talk then do whatever you were thinking."

Yami scoffed. "So you wouldn't want to do anything to me?"

"Not in that way, pervert," I said. Jokingly, of course.

"Ohh, so you _would_ do perverted things to me if you had the chance?" It was Yami's turn to smirk. I immediately blushed deep red.

"N-n-no, I didn't mean that!" I waved my hands back and forth in front of my face.

"Well, I wasn't thinking in that way."

I pouted, still blushing a deep crimson.

Yami then laughed. "But you were serious about going to my room and talking, right?"

I nodded. "Yeah, obviously."

"Ok, cool. C'mon, Yuugi." Yami beamed at me and started walking towards a hallway on the opposite side of the room to the left of where we walked in. The hallway was not as luminated as the living room, but lit enough to wander around the maze of doors without crashing into things. He stopped at a lone door at the end of the hall on the right, and turned the knob. The door was opened to reveal a room with similar color schemes as the rest of the house, except with a bed against the far wall, a small desk across from the door, and a nightstand pressed against the wall and the bed on to of its four sides.

Yami stepped in, and ushered me in as well. "Nothing's going to come out and bite you, Yuugi, come on."

I stepped inside slowly as the door shut behind me. Yami took a seat in the desk chair, and I just found a spot in the middle of the floor to sit on. Yami gave me a look.

"Oh come on, Yuugi, you don't have to sit on the floor," Yami commented.

I shrugged. "I like the floor."

"You can sit on the bed if you want."

"I like the floor," I repeated. Yami rolled his eyes.

"You don't have to be so scared. Just because it's the two of us alone and we're in my bedroom, doesn't mean that I'm going to do anything 'bad' to you," he said, sighing.

"I like the floor."

Yami sighed loudly. "You are hopeless, you know."

"Yeah."

It was silent. Yami was messing with an unbent paperclip, and I was fiddling with the untied shoelace on my left shoe. It was an uncomfortable silence, to say the least. I finally decided to talk first.

"So, Yami, what should we talk about?"

No answer. Yami continued to bend the paperclip in an odd shape. I repeated myself.

"Yami, what should we talk about?"

Still no answer. Is he ignoring me on purpose?

"Answer me, Yami!"

Yami knew I was talking to him. I grew frustrated. I stood up and marched over to where Yami was sitting. I jumped and latched myself onto Yami's shoulders from behind, and he fell forward in a heap of confusion onto the foor with me holding him down.

"Answer me, answer me, answer me," I repeated over and over again. Yami attempted to throw me off of him, still ignoring me, but I didn't budge. Yami finally snapped.

"Ok, ok, fine! I'm talking now!" he exclaimed.

I giggled. "I win!"

"Yes, you do. Now get off of me, please."

I unwrapped my arms and sat next to him with my legs crossed. I had a large smile on my face, like a kid that just saw Santa Clause. Who is just an old fat man in a suit.

"Soooo?" I hinted, leaning my head towards Yami.

"What?"

"Why were you ignoring me?" I asked in a sing-song voice.

"Because you didn't accept my offer."

"Of what?"

"I offered you a place to sit. And you didn't even say 'no, thank you'," Yami said with a fake child's sadness tone.

"You are acting like a baby, Yami!" I laughed. I poked him in the arm. "You didn't say please!" I stuck my tounge out at him.

Yami poked me back. "Now who's acting like a child!"

I poked Yami back. "You are!"

Yami poked me. "No, you are!"

I poked Yami. "You!"

Yami poked me. "No, you!"

Eventually, this turned into a poke-off. Laughing uncontrolably, we were poking each other in the arm and trying to block any pokes we recieved. Until I decided I would 'accidentally' poke Yami in the side. Then, before I could do anything about it, he had tackled me to the ground and thought he would tickle me as revenge. This pretty much went on until we were both tired and my sides felt like they were numb. The laughing eventually died down. Yami took a quick glance at the alarm clock next to the bed.

"Woah, do you know what time it is?"

I tilted my head to the side. "What?"

"We got here at about eleven fifteen, and it's 12:03 now."

I blinked. "Were we seriously 'fighting' for that long?" I questioned, putting air-quotes around 'fighting'.

Yami shrugged. "I guess."

Since I didn't want another silence, I decided to start a conversation. "So, Yami, where are your parents?"

"Don't have any."

I widened my eyes a bit. "What? Really? You live alone?"

Yami shook his head. "No, Marik and Bakura live here, too."

Marik and Bakura? Oh, the psycopaths. Alright. "Really? Are you guys like, related?"

"Me and Marik are cousins. And Bakura was with Marik. No idea what relation they have."

"Oh, I see. So, what are they doing?"

"They're probably terrorising little kids." We both laughed, because we knew it was probably true.

"Or killing kitties."

"Or kicking puppies."

"Or stealing drugs that the drug dealers stole anyway."

"Or plotting to blow up the school."

"Or eating babies."

Yami looked at me after that statement. "What?"

"I said, or eating babies."

"I know what you said, but why?"

"Because it's probably true."

Yami shrugged. "Yeah."

"Scary thought."

"Yup."

Sighing, I fell backwards onto my back, staring at the ceiling. "Now what? You've tried killing me and we talked about random stuff."

"Ha ha, very funny, Yuugi," Yami laughed sarcastically. "I'm not sure, actually."

"Hmm."

Yami sighed. "You know, Yuugi?"

I sat up. "Yeah?"

"I like you, Yuugi."

Time seemed to stop. Did he just say..... he LIKES me? He likes ME? HE likes me? Oh. My. God. What do I say now? What do I do now? Time creeped up and hit me in the back of the head to get me back in the flow of things.

"W-what?"

"I like you. You're a cool person. You are by far the best friend I've ever had."

Of course. There's always that catch where he means something else. I am not surprised at all.

"O-oh, okay. T-thanks," I said, quietly.

Yami smiled, and I smiled sheepishly back.

Then, all of a sudden, all of the lights flicked out. The only light in the room was the alarm clock. I gasped slightly in fear. I heard the rustling of movement, which I knew was Yami, then I heard his footsteps growing near me. And, once again, before I could do anything about it, Yami had tripped over me, and we both toppled backwards. My head smacked the floor hard, and I had the breath knocked out of me when Yami finally collided with me. Not because he had landed on me, but because he was over me, in close contact, in the dark, in his bedroom. Ironic or evil?

The lights flicked back on, and it was too soon. I was blushing furiously, paralyzed by embarrassment, and Yami was still trying to comprehend what had just happened. And before anyone could get their thoughts straight, the door flung open. The forms looked rediculously like Marik and Bakura.

"Wow, three weeks and you already consider raping the poor kid," Marik cackled.

Bakura added, "Or maybe _Yuugi_ started it."

Yami stood up and pointed towards the direction of the living room. "Out. Get out."

"Yeah, finish what you started-"

"NOW," Yami snapped. They both scurried back down the hall, shutting the door on their way out. Not too long later, the sounds of maniacal laughter were heard. Yami sighed and turned back to me. "I'm sorry about that."

Myself, who had just sat up, I was still blushing violet red. And the psycos did not help reduce the blush either.

"Yuugi?"

I snapped out of whatever trance I was in. "Y-yeah?"

Yami sighed quietly. "I'm sorry."

I smiled. "For what? I'm okay, you're okay. Thought I'm not sure about those two," I said, referring to said psycos.

Yami laughed. "Yeah, you're right."

And that's when I finally realized why I liked Yami.

He could turn any situation into a good one.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Kurisuten: ...Longest. Chapter. Yet. This took an entire week to do. A week.

Ritsuka: Takes you that long to recover from being dumped?"

Kurisuten: No, I got writer's block towards the middle of the chapter.

Ritsuka: Oh.

Kurisuten: Because I'll never get over my aibou-kun. Duh.

Ritsuka: Oh, right, you and your sister are trying to get him back.

Kurisuten: That would be correct.

Ritsuka: Yup.

Kurisuten: Though I know how to be not depressed.

Ritsuka: That's good.

Kurisuten: So. Reviews are appreciated. Arigato gozaimasu, minna-san! Ja ne!

Ritsuka: Bai-bai!


	6. Much to Hide

Kurisuten: OH THANK YOU SO MUCH YOU LOVELY REVIEWERS!

Ritsuka: ...They helped you get over the fact that "your" aibou-kun broke up with you?

Kurisuten: I don't care about that anymore.

Ristuka: And you said you'd never get over him.

Kurisuten: WELL I DID. Now shut up, the readers don't care about my life outside the fic!

Ritsuka: True.

Kurisuten: So, this is sort of a part two of the last chapter. For right now, Yuugi-chan still is discovering his feelings for Yami-kun! Karera wa kawaii desu!

Ritsuka: ...I'm sure most of the people readin have no idea what you just said.

Kurisuten: I said "They are cute!" After four weeks of Japanese class, I wanna test my limited bilingual-ness.

Ritsuka: Ah.

Kurisuten: Ok, so, yeah. This is another "short" chapter. I try to keep them over 1500 words, so at least you know I attempt stretching my ideas.

Ritsuka: Yeah, I guess.

Kurisuten: Alright, disclaimer, Loveless-kun!

Ritsuka: **Kurisuten Ichikish does not own YuGiOh, any characters, ideas that aren't hers, or the songs she uses for chapter titles.**

Kurisuten: But Soubi's about to officially own you.

Ritsuka: W-what?

Kurisuten: I'll miss those cat ears of yours! Enjoy the chapter, readers!

(NOTE: There are MANY pairings between Marik, Malik, Bakura, and Ryou. I support all pairings of those people, so don't you dare flame ANY of them! Besides, you're reading for the Puzzleshipping, not everything else. So you have NO RIGHT to critize! Though compliment all you like. XD)

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

I woke up the next morning. Nothing seemed different. I'm still in my bed, in my room, in my house. The room is still slightly dark, since the sun had yet to rise fully. The alarm clock was still buzzing annoyingly persistant, five o' clock sharp. The clothes I wore yesterday were still thrown into a pile in the corner of the room. It was still just me. I was still alive, untouched. So, assumingly, there's nothing different.

Wrong.

There was definately something different. Although, it wasn't something visible. What was different?

I slept comfortably last night.

Yes, after so long, I fell asleep the minute my head hit the pillow and did not wake until the alarm shook me from my slumber.

I have to thank Yami for that. Even with all of my thoughts and wonders docking my mind, Yami was able to settle all of them and allowed me to have a night of peace.

So, thanks Yami.

Even so, I was beyond tired. All of those nights with no sleep finally caught up to me, and now I still feel sleepy. At least it's not as bad as what it usually is. Usually, I can barely stay awake. But still. Maybe I should get a little bit more sleep?

I yawned. I don't have to go to school for a while, so sleeping for another half an hour shouldn't be a problem. Leaning over to the alarm clock, I reset it to 5:30. There. Half an hour to get a bit more of my well-needed sleep. Yawning again, I layed my head back against the pillow and quickly let myself drift to unconciousness. Sort of.

I didn't really have much time to dream of anything. It felt like only five minutes since I fell asleep. Still, it was probably time to wake up anyway. Opening my eyes, I didn't hear my alarm clock, and the room was luminated. I shot up and recognized the sound that woke me up as knocking on the door.

"Y-yeah?" I called through the door.

The door opened, revealing... my grandpa and Yami?

"Are you going to get up and go to school?" my grandpa asked. Gulping, I forced my reply out.

"W-what time is it?"

Yami sighed. "It's six fourty-five! We only have fifteen minutes before school starts!"

My eyes widened. "W-what?! Are you kidding me?!"

"No, I'm not!" Yami exclaimed. He walked over to me and dragged me out of bed by my hand. "Come on, get up and get dressed!"

I blinked a few times. "Okay, okay, I'm going! Just go away, you guys!" I shooed Yami out the door, which caused my grandpa to back up a little bit as well. I shut the door and raided the closet for a shirt and some pants. Throwing the pajamas off and putting the clothes I had grabbed, I pulled open a drawer and grabbed some socks as well. Putting those on as fast as I could, I rushed out the door with my backpack flung onto my shoulder. I rushed down the stairs and grabbed my shoes placed neatly next to the foot of the steps. I pulled on each, hopping on the opposite foot clumsily. I grabbed Yami by the arm, who had been talking to my grandpa, and flung the door open.

"Bye, Grandpa!" I threw over my shoulder before I shut the door behind me. I let go of Yami. "Okay, let's go, come on!"

Yami laughed. "Okay, no need to dislocate my shoulder, though."

"There's no time for that! We have ten minutes to get to school! And it usually takes fifteen minutes to walk there!"

"Then we'll just have to run, won't we?" Yami suggested, who had been walking quickly as if trying to leave me behind. I mean, I was pretty much jogging to keep up with him!

"Yeah!" I said, taking off into a run. Yami had followed behind, soon passing me and growing farther away. I struggled to keep up with him.

Yami looked over his shoulder. "Come on, Yuugi! You're going to be late!"

I panted, "I can't run as fast as you!"

Yami stopped and let me catch up. I stopped in front of him, placing my hands on my knees and tried to gain my breath back. "Okay, Yuugi. I have an idea then."

I looked up at him. "Oh really? What's your idea?"

Instead of answering my question, he forcably stood me straight and walked behind me, placing his hands on my shoulders. He started to push me forward. "This would be my idea."

I turned my head to look at him. "And this will work?"

"Yeah! I push you, and you run the same speed as me!" Yami said.

"What if I get tired?"

Yami was quiet. Then, he spoke again. "Don't worry about that! We'll be late!"

So for the remaining three fourths of the way to school, Yami and myself were running to school with him pushing me forward, just so we both wouldn't be late. And you know what? I was smiling and laughing the whole way. Not sure about Yami though, but I knew he was smiling.

We finally did get to school. On time, might I add. Quickly waving to Yami upon entering the school, he ran one way down the hall, and I ran the opposite direction. The last thing I needed was to be late. I had about thirty seconds to get my butt in the classroom and in a chair. And my class was almost across the school! At least the halls were semi-cleared. But still, really, I was most likely going to be late. Running faster, the classroom door appeared in sight. I was tired from running, but I need to get to the class before the bell rung. The door became closer and closer with each second. My hand soon became in contact with the door handle, and I pulled it open and stepped inside, right as the bell rang.

The teacher had looked up at me upon entry. "Good job, Mutou. Not late, but try to be earlier. Go to your seat."

Great. I made it. And still got the teacher in a bad mood. Just great.

o-o-o

The bell for lunch had rung, and I sighed as I walked out of the class. My hand felt like it was going to fall off from how many notes I had to take. Thankfully, I can finally have a break from all of the classes and have time to myself. And Yami, of course. I feet steered my body to the same tree me and Yami always sit at. I liked talking to Yami. I forget everything that's going on, and it seems like the only people are Yami and me. Lunch really is the only time during school I am truly enjoying myself.

I had gotten to the destination, and I had discovered that Yami had yet to arrive. I shrugged and sat against the tree, bringing my knees to my chest. I set my backpack against the side of my body, so I'd know if anyone tried to take it. I leaning my elbows on my kneecaps and placed my head in my hands. Looking around, I searched the sea of people for Yami, but found no one such. After five minutes of waiting and scanning the people, I sighed and gave up. Reaching into my backpack, I pulled out the homework from some class I don't care about and decided to get started on that. And while I did that, Yami still didn't show up. After I finished it, Yami still didn't show up. After I started to pick blades of grass out of the ground, Yami still didn't show up. Once the bell rang, Yami still didn't show up. So what do I do? Shrug it off and go to class, then ask Yami what happened later? Break down a cry about how Yami doesn't like me? Ok, bad option. I stood up and walked back in the school to go to my next class.

After two thoughtless hours of boring class lectures, the bell rang signalling the end of school. I never thought school would end, especially with how slow today was. Weaving through other people, I found the exit to the school again. Walking out, I noticed that it was cooler than it was a few days ago. At least it's getting colder, finally. I dragged my feet away from the school and to the sidewalk. My feet felt heavy, and I was getting tired. Sighing, I gave up on walking home and found a shady spot on the sidewalk to sit down for a while. I put my head in my hands and watched cars go by. Cars and bicycle wheels. I don't know how long it was until I heard my name being called.

"Yuugi! What's up?" I looked up to see Ryou standing over me.

"Wha- Oh, hi Ryou," I replied, standing up.

He looked at me, puzzled. "Are you okay? What's wrong?"

I shook my head and smiled. "Nothing's wrong with me!"

"...Doesn't look like it."

Must Ryou be so blunt?

"O-oh." I rubbed the back of my head.

"So," Ryou said, shaking off whatever thought he was thinking, "wanna go to my house?"

"I have homework," I lied.

Ryou gave me a look that knew I was lying. "Oh come on, we have the same honors classes, and there is NEVER homework in your other classes."

Oh, duh. "Yeah, I guess."

"What's wrong with you?" Ryou asked, poking my arm.

"Nothing."

"Tell me."

"Nothing."

"Tell me."

"Nothing."

"Tell me!"

There was silence. Then, I answered him. "Do you know why Yami wasn't at lunch? This morning, he didn't say anything about not going to be at lunch, and during fourth class before lunch, I saw him walking towards the office, but he didn't look like he was going home early."

After I said that, Ryou sighed loudly. "Oh great, Malik must be back."

"Malik?" I asked, unfamiliar with the name.

Ryou gasped. "Oh, right, you haven't met Malik yet! Ok, so, you know how you and Yami look alike?"

I nodded. "Yeah."

"You know how me and Bakura look alike?"

"Yeah."

"Marik has a look alike too."

Yeah, that makes sense. "Oh."

"Except Malik is like, almost as tall as Marik!" Ryou added, reaching his hand up high to emphasize how tall he was.

"So, what does this Malik guy have to do with Yami being gone?" I broke the subject of how tall Malik was. Even if I was shocked that someone was actually almost as tall as Marik!

Ryou sighed again. "Well, randomly, Malik used to take Marik, Bakura, and Yami out of school, just for the heck of it. But then, Malik had to go back to Egypt-"

I interrupted, "Woah, woah, woah. Egypt?"

He looked at me. "Yeah, Bakura, Marik, Malik, and Yami are all from Egypt."

I blinked. "Never knew that."

"Anyway, Malik had to go back for some unknown reason, but apparently he's back."

I was confused. "So, how does he get them out of school?"

"He just walks in and asked to take them out of school. He passes off as an adult to that front office!"

I stared at Ryou. "That's weird."

"Really."

"So, does he not go to school or something?" I asked, referring to Malik.

"Nope. He doesn't. He never enrolled. Apparently, he was schooled enough back in Egypt, and he wasn't going back," Ryou mocked.

"Oh, I see. So, did Marik and Bakura not know about this, too?"

"Nah, Bakura found out this morning when Marik decided to stay home at the last minute and I dragged him to school with me anyway. I didn't find out until fourth hour, though. We have the same class, so he told me that he knew he'd be taken out later."

"Oh, okay."

After some more talking, we stopped at my house to drop off my backpack and tell my grandpa where I was going. But of course, my grandpa wasn't there, so I wrote a small note and fled the house again. I turned to Ryou and asked, "So where do you live?"

"Right next to Yami."

"Really?"

"Yeah, we're all neighbors. Bakura lives with me, and Yami got stuck with Marik. But the two of them, Marik and Bakura, don't really have a permanant house to live in. They just crash at which ever house is closer."

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah. Pretty much. But last night they decided to stay at 'my' house."

I raised an eyebrow. "Marik and Bakura came over to Yami's house yesterday-"

"And then they went drinking and ended up at mine and Bakura's house," Ryou interrupted, explaining.

"Oh, I get it now. Wait, aren't they underaged?"

Ryou clicked his tounge. "As if they care. Marik was held back two grades and should be in twelth grade, and Bakura surprisingly got held back once and should be in the eleventh grade. Trust me, they really don't care about the rules or laws or whatever."

I stared at Ryou. "And you like Bakura for what positive reasons now?"

He suddenly got red in the face and turned to me, flustered. "H-hey, I-I don't l-l-like B-Bakura!"

I tilted my head down and stared at Ryou with a smirk. "Oh come on, I know you do. Hell, _you_ know you do. No use denying it."

"I-I r-really don't!"

I hummed. "You keep telling yourself that." I turned my head back to the front, but still holding my smirk.

"You're acting like Yami or something!" Ryou yelled at me.

"Am I?" I asked, actually serious this time. I turned my head toward Ryou and pointed to myself to emphasize I was talking about me.

"Yeah, you are, Yuugi..." Ryou trailed off towards the end of the sentence. Suddenly, a smile spread across his face. "Speaking of Yami, you like _him_, don't you?!"

It was my turn to be flustered. "W-what?!"

"Ha! I knew it! You like Yami, you like Yami, you like Yami!" Ryou chanted over and over again, trying to mock me.

"Well, you like Bakura!"

"You like Yami!"

Completely stopping walking, turning to face each other, hands on hips, and staring at each other in the face, we tried not to laugh or grin. Unfortunately, we barely lasted ten seconds before we were cracking up with laughter. Finally sighing and surpressing any leftover giggles, we continued walking.

Finally asking, I turned my head to Ryou again. "So, why do you like Bakura? You never answered that."

In return, Ryou looked at me as well. "Why do _you_ like Yami?"

"I asked first."

"I asked second. Now answer the question."

I sighed. "I don't know! I just do."

"Not good enough! Come on, answer it! I wanna know!"

I looked at the ground. "W-well, uh... Yami's really nice, and..."

Ryou clicked his tounge. "Not too sure about your feeling for him, are you?"

I pointed at him, and overly excited, I exclaimed, "Exactly!"

Ryou stared at me for a moment before talking. "You'll find out eventually, I promise."

"Okay, now why do you like Bakura?" I asked.

And, to my surprise, he answered without hesitation, "He protects me from the outside world. He helps me forget the bad things, and only lets me remember the good things. He's like a guardian angel for me," then he paused before adding, "A demented guardian angel, at least."

I softly laughed. "Yeah, that last part was true."

"Well, he is! Him and Marik both! Yami's the normal one between the three of them. Heck, _Malik_ isn't even as crazy as them!"

I can totally agree with Ryou. And I haven't even met Malik yet.

Ryou pointed to a house. It was a house next to Yami's, although it was past Yami's house, not before it. "So, that's where me and Bakura live, right there."

I nodded. "Yeah, I see."

"Wanna stop and see Yami first, though?" he asked, nudging my arm with his elbow.

"U-uh, maybe later," I replied, moving my body away from Ryou.

Ryou stomped his foot childishly. "Aww, why not?"

"H-he's probably b-busy..."

"Hmm, have it your way." We were passing Yami's house, and I stared at it, wondering if I should change my mind. Me and Ryou both knew I wanted to go see him first. So why couldn't I bring myself to say 'Hey, let's go see Yami. I changed my mind.'? I might never get my answer, for Ryou and I were already walking up the driveway of his own house and nearing the front door. Ryou grasped the doorknob and turned it, pushing the door open. The house looked almost exactly like Yami's house, except there were some lamps in the corner of the room and on a small table next to the couch. The colors were darker than the ones in Yami's house, and the room was dimmed with the exception of the lamp next to the couch and the television. Plopped in the middle of the couch was a white haired figured recognized as Bakura, who appeared to be eating a bag of chips. Doritos or something.

Ryou walked over to the back of the couch behing Bakura and leaned over the couch, head next to Bakura's, one arm under his chin and the other around Bakura's shoulder. Bakura's eyes were still glued to the T.V. Was he watching South Park?

"Kura-kun," Ryou said quietly. Bakura's only reply was a grunt. "Kura, where's Marik and Malik?"

"In their room. They've been in there for about some time now. Haven't been keeping track."

"What are they doing?" Ryou asked.

"Probably ass-fucking each other. How the hell should I know?" he replied, finally turning around to look at Ryou. Ryou's arm slipped from around his shoulder and hit the couch. I cringed at the thought of Bakura's suggestion.

"Are you serious...?" I asked hesitantly. Bakura looked at me.

"Yes. I am."

I winced again. A chill ran up my spine. How can Ryou deal with this?! I'm scared just listening to him talk!

Ryou stood up to full height and ushered me to follow him. "Come on, Yuugi. Let's go."

I nodded and followed him, assuming he was talking about to his room. As I passed Bakura, he stopped me. "Hold on, Yuugi."

Shiverring at the sound of his voice again, I turned to look at him. "Yeah, Bakura?"

"So what _were _you and Yami doing yesterday when we saw you?" he asked, a small hint of a smirk on his face.

"H-huh? W-well, the lights suddenly went out, and..."

Bakura interrupted. "So that's what Marik went into the basement for! He's a genius! Anyway, what happened?"

"W-well, Yami fell on me... and you guys walked in..." I said, trying to speak up.

"Ah, so Yami decided to make a move on you in the dark! Hah! I knew he wasn't as innocent as he tried to make himself look like!"

I widened my eyes. "N-no, it wasn't like that! I-it was an accident!"

"How do you know? It was dark in that room, remember? No way you could tell it was an accident or not."

"Y-Yami would never do that!" I tried to explain.

"Mhmm. You keep telling yourself that," Bakura finished, turning back to the T.V., propping his feet on the table and digging his hand in the bag of chips. I turned back to Ryou and tried to push him down the hall and away from Bakura. Ryou continued walking down the hall, finding a door, and opening it to reveal a bright room, with white walls and a blue carpet. And it actually had a window. Might I add how CLEAN it was?

I let myself inside the room and Ryou shut the door. Then, I wished I could predict what happened next so I could cover my ears.

"Yami did WHAT to you?!" he exclaimed. I cringed and put a hand to my ear, trying to stop the ringing in it.

"The lights went out and Yami stood up to go to the door and turn the lights back on, and I was about to stand up too, but he tripping on me and fell. Then the lights came back on and Bakura and Marik came in," I explained, still trying stop the ringing in my ears.

Ryou relaxed. "Oh, okay. I can believe that. So it was planned?"

"Most likely."

"Oh, okay. I thought Yami like, raped you or something!"

I widened my eyes. "What? No! Yami wouldn't do that!"

"Yeah, I know, don't worry," Ryou reassured me.

I nodded. I had a question suddely come to mind, so I asked Ryou, "How can Bakura say what Malik and Marik are doing to calmly and with no emotion?! I mean, no emotion at all!"

"If you and Marik did the exact same thing Bakura just said, you wouldn't either."

"Bakura and Marik did what?!"

Ryou sighed. "One night, they got really drunk and... yeah, did that. And the whole reason I know this is because I had to witness half of it."

"I feel bad for you. Really bad for you."

Ryou took a breath, as if he was going to say something, until there was sound coming from outside. Ryou held that breath he took and listened. I listened as well. Although, those noises were a bit too... obscene... for me to repeat and explain. Ryou looked at me, and I returned the stare. Ryou finally said something.

"To Yami's house?"

"Yeah. To Yami's house."

Me and Ryou quickly left the room, trying not to pay attention to the sounds coming from a door just past Ryou's. Entering the living room, we noticed Bakura had turned the television off and was rolling up the chip bag.

"Where are you going?" Ryou asked.

"To Yami's. I am not listening to those two all day! And they better not be in my room either," Bakura said, adding the last statement under his breath. "What about you two?"

"Same," Ryou replied. Bakura nodded.

"Plus, Yami has better reseption on the T.V. and has a hell of a lot better snacks than here."

Ryou scoffed. "Well sorry that someone wasted the money buying things we actually need."

Bakura returned the scoff. "Well sorry you did."

The tension in the air was so thick, you could slice it with a knife. More noises were heard, and Bakura sighed in discust.

"Okay, let's get the hell out of here." Bakura opened the front door and walked out, leaving the door open for us. Shrugging, we followed him quickly, shutting the door behind us. Walking fast, we caught up with Bakura, who was already hopping the fence to the front yard of Yami's house. Ryou and I decided to go around the fence, and we walked up the driveway to the front door. Bakura was already there, picking the lock. I didn't want to tell him it would be easier to knock on the door and wait for an answer. Bakura got the door open with ease, and we all walked inside. The lights were on this time thankfully.

Bakura called out, "Hey, Yami, get your ass out here!" Me and Ryou tried not to laugh. A few seconds later, a tired groan was heard, then a door opening, then the shuffling of feet down the hallway. Around the corner, Yami appeared in pajama pants and no shirt. I tried not to blush. I don't think I accomplished that very well.

"Oh, come on, I'm trying to sleep, you ass," Yami replied, walking toward Bakura and us.

"Well, you could be spending your time away from school doing something worth spending time for."

"Well, excuse me, princess. Some of us don't like the extra work in the classes we missed."

"Well, excuse me, bitch. Some of us don't even do the extra work."

"Well, some of us would actually like to pass."

"Well, some of us don't care anyway."

"Some of us haven't been held back a grade or two."

"Some of us don't have PMS."

Yami stood and was fuming right about now, and Bakura was standing tall, proud of himself that he won. Or so he thought.

"Some of us don't spend their time getting drunk and then fuck people in the ass."

Bakura took a step towards Yami. "Oh, you did not just-"

Me and Ryou rushed forward to hold Bakura back. "Bakura, calm down! You don't have to fight him!" Ryou told him, struggling to keep him back.

Bakura relaxed and walked away from us, towards the kitchen. "Yeah, yeah, whatever. Hey, Yami, what do you got to eat in this damn house?" He was already looking through the fridge and he spoke.

"Nothing much, actually. If you want that piece of cake though, you can eat that," Yami replied, scratching the back of his head.

"Awesome!" Bakura took out the plate with a small piece of cake in plastic wrap. Grabbing a fork from a drawer to the left of him, he dug into the cake.

"How does he stay so thin after eating all of that junk?!" I whispered to Yami.

Yami shrugged. "Don't ask me."

Whatever my real reason for liking Yami is, it doesn't matter right now. I'll find out eventually.

Besides, I think seeing his shirtless is good enough for me right now.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Kurisuten: ...When I said "short chapter", I meant.... one of the longest ones. And sorry for the horrible language. The rating might have to go to "M" for it! What do you guys think?

...

Kurisuten: Ritsuka hasn't come back yet? Oh well, I have a replacement.

Kishichi: Hey, what's up?

Kurisuten: Say hello to my "genderbended" version of myself!

Kishichi: -peace sign-

Kurisuten: And yeah, Yuugi _is_ slowly learning his feelings! Just... For now, I wanted to put Yami shirtless at least once!

Kishichi: And what a good choice! Who wouldn't want to see that?

Kurisuten: Yeah I know-

Shecka: -rams door down- Where's the yaoi?

Kurisuten: And here's the reason why I was scared of letting my FF account be revealed to her.

Shecka: Hey, that's mean! I'm just here to take pictures of the yaoi!

Kurisuten: Then go take pictures of Marik and Malik. Third door to the left.

Shecka: I'll be back. -runs off to go take pictures of yaoi-

Kishichi: And I think you should hurry up with that damn lime scene!

Kurisuten: I'm getting there! Just shut up and let them develop their feelings more!

Kishichi: Screw that! Just post the lime!

Kurisuten: Shut up or you can't be in the writer comments!

Kishichi: -pouts-

Kurisuten: Review, please! Ja ne!

Kishichi: Ja!


	7. All the Things He Said

Kurisuten: So, I started typing this... early? Yeah, early.

Kishichi: Earlier than the other chapters when you started them.

Kurisuten: Yup.

Kishichi: So, you know how you said that you like the pairings between Ryou, Bakura, Marik, and Malik last chapter?

Kurisuten: Yup.

Kishichi: What exact pairings do you like between Yuugi, Yami, Bakura, Ryou, Marik, and Malik?

Kurisuten: Hmm... definatelly YuugixYami, BakuraxRyou, MarikxMalik, YuugixRyou, BakuraxMalik, BakuraxMarik, RyouxMalik, and maybe a little of YamixMarik and YamixBakura.

Kishichi: ...That's almost every pairing.

Kurisuten: Yup.

Kishichi: Oh yeah, and Shecka told me to tell you that Ritsuka's cat ears are finally gone-

Kurisuten: YES!

Kishichi: -but Soubi won't let him come back.

Kurisuten: Damn. Oh well! Disclaimer, Kishichi!

Kishichi: Yup! **Kurisuten Yamichi Ichikish does not own YuGiOh, any of it's characters, songs used for the chapter titles, or any references made.**

Kurisuten: Not bad for your first disclaimer.

Kishichi: Thanks!

Kurisuten: This WILL be a short chapter! And Yami's hardly in it, if at all! You've been warned. Chapter start!

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

It was the next morning, and Yami didn't have to drag me out of bed to get me up. I woke up at 5:30 (and actually remembered to turn the alarm on...) and was out the door in time to get to school. Nothing much, really. No big introductions.

But, if you're wondering what had happened yersterday at Yami's house when Ryou, Bakura, and I visited, Bakura ended up watching South Park (in High Definition) and the rest of us just talked in Yami's room. And he put a shirt back on, damn him. And I haven't got to meet Malik yet. But hey, I'll live!

It was my second hour class, and I was already falling asleep. I mean, how are you supposed to pay attention to some stupid lecture about how to make a proof about angles? You really can't. Me and Ryou had chosen two seats next to each other, though, and were passing notes as the teacher's back as turned. Subjects went from how boring this class was, how the teacher looks like a fat turtle, and deciding who was more insane, Marik or Bakura. We still can't decide.

As I was writing a reply to what Ryou wrote ('Oh come on, Marik probably eats babies!'), the classroom door opened, and a student wearing the card all student-office aides wear walked through the rows of desks to the turtle- I mean, the teacher. He handed it to him, and walked out of the room again. The teacher read through the paper before looking up and said, "Yuugi Mutou, you're going home."

I looked over at Ryou, exchanging a quick glance of confusion, before gathering all of the papers on my desk and walking to the front of the room to grab the paper and use it as a pass to get through the hallways. I walked back to my desk, grabbed my backpack, and swiftly passed my reply to Ryou and walked out of the class.

I arrived at the office and immediately saw a tall man with platinum blonde hair, the smallest shirt I have ever seen, and the tightest pants I've seen as well. He glanced at me, and I noticed his eyes were lavender. He reminded me of Marik. Was this Malik?

The office attendant looked at me and nodded. I made a small nod back before following the Marik-look-alike out the door and out of the school. He didn't look at me, but I looked up at him, studying his appearence. Despite his wardrobe, he still had the face of a child. He was... interesting, to say the least. He walked towards a red, shiny car that looked pretty expensive. He pulled some cars keys out of the pocket of his pants (how does anything fit in those pants?!) and unlocked the car before opening the door and climbing in. I followed his example and both car doors shut.

"So, you're Yuugi?" he asked me.

I nodded quickly. "Y-yeah."

He looked at me, studying my face features and whatnot. Finally, he nodded. "I'm Malik."

I figured as much. "O-oh, okay. Nice to meet you."

Malik smiled. "You too."

I pulled the seatbelt over myself and put it in the buckle just next to the seat. "I didn't think you could drive."

Malik put the keys in the ignition. "I can. I just don't have my licence."

Is this the part where I get scared and freak out? "Y-you don't?"

"Nope," he replied, starting the car and backing out of the parking lot. "But I have a fake one if anyone pulls the car over. Which I highly doubt."

I'm guessing he doesn't go over the speed limit then. Or at least with a short person in the car.

"So, I heard that you liked Yami," Malik stated. I looked at him, but he had his eyes on the road.

"F-from who?"

"Bakura. But he said he got it from Ryou, who got it from _you_."

I really wish Ryou didn't trust Bakura so much.

"But it's true, isn't it?" Malik asked. The car stopped at a stoplight, and Malik looked to me and waited for a reply. I looked down at the floor by my feet. Eventually, I slowly nodded. Malik hummed. "Ah, I knew it." The car drove forward again. It was silent for a little bit. No words from me or Malik. But, after two minutes, Malik asked me, "So, you hungry at all? It's no problem, really."

I shook my head. "No, thank you."

"If you say so," Malik laughed. Okay, so maybe he's not that insane.

I decided to ask Malik a few questions. "So, is this your car? Because it's really nice."

"Nah, it's Marik's. I drive motorcycles more than cars. But I like to speed a lot on them, and I didn't want to accidently kill you, you know?" Malik explained.

"Yeah, I get it."

The car finally pulled into a driveway. I recognized the house as Ryou's. The car stopped and Malik and me stepped out of the car and walked towards the house. The door had been unlocked, and we walked inside. Malik turned to me and said, "You can stay here until school gets out. Your grandpa would think you ditched if you came home now, right?"

I nodded. "Thank you."

"No problem." He walked into the hall and into a doorway. The door shut, and I was alone in Ryou's house with Malik. I have a lot of questions to ask him, but I can't remember the questions. Why would he take me out of school for nothing? There's no way it was just to meet me. He could have met me after school! So what was the real reason?

I walked to the couch and sat down, not turning the television on or moving. I just sat there, staring at the floor. What was the purpose of taking me out of school early? What did I want to ask Malik? More and more questions related to the previous to floated in my head. I was going to figure it out on my own. By myself. Okay, so what had Malik brought up? Maybe that would help me out a little bit. Well, he doesn't have an official driver's license. That can't be it. If he wanted to kill me, I'd already be dead. He was studying my face. Wait, that's stupid. That has nothing to do with it. There was something else, so why can't I remember what it was?!

I sat there for an entire hour. It only felt like five minutes, though. I still didn't know what it was that Malik had brought up. I thought for what suddenly felt like forever. Then, I realized it.

He knew I liked Yami.

Yes, that must be it! Malik wanted to know for certain that I liked Yami!

But wait... He already figured that out, so why take me out of school? It suddenly didn't make sence anymore.

There must be another part of it.

He said that Bakura found out from Ryou, so Ryou must have told him something else to go with the fact I liked Yami. What did I tell him... Or what did he tell me?

Oh, right! Me and Ryou were talking about why we liked Yami and Bakura, respectively. He made me tell first, and I didn't know the exact reason why, so he said I was unsure of why I liked him! That's what Ryou told Bakura! So that's why Malik wanted to talk to me. To help me realize why I like Yami! That has to be it.

So, am I supposed to sit here and figure it out? I could do that anytime, so it must involve Malik. Malik knows more about Yami than me, so he wants me to ask him about Yami! I did it! Okay, so, I better go ask him now.

I stood up, and walked toward the hallway, looking for the door Malik went into. I knew it was a door on the left, because I saw him walk into a door. I don't remember which one, though. I looked down the short hallway and saw that there was only one door on the left, and two on the right. There was only one room he could be in, so I stood in front of it, and knocked hesitantly. A voice on the other side, telling me I could go inside, was Malik, I knew. I turned the knob and opened the door. I peered inside to see Malik on a laptop laying on his stomach across the bed. There was a lamp on the table next to it, lighting up a small portion of the room. Malik looked up at me.

"Yeah?" he asked, closing the laptop and sitting up with his legs crossed.

I walked inside the room. "I wanted to ask you something..."

"Oh, okay, sure. You can come in if you want."

I took a few steps more forward and sat on the floor. "So, umm... how much did Bakura tell you?" I tried to say to where he could hear me.

"Yes, you finally figured it out!" Malik exclaimed, jumping slightly. "Well, Bakura told me that you liked Yami, but you were unsure why."

"That's it?"

"Yeah, really. So, I took you out of school to help you realize why."

"Oh, okay. That could be helpful..."

"It really could."

"So, can you tell me about Yami?" I asked, looking up at Malik.

Malik sighed. "Well, I don't know all that much about him. But, what I can tell you is that he's had a pretty hard life. I can't tell you all of the details, unfortunately. And also, I'm not sure if he likes you, like you like him. But, what I know..." Malik paused. "Is that you are the most important person in his life to you."

I stared at Malik. "A-are you sure?"

"One hundred percent."

"Can you tell me what you know about Yami's past?"

"I can't tell you everything I know, but I'll tell you what I can. His entire family died horribly, and so did mine, Marik's, and Bakura's. I can't tell you why, unfortunately. So, we left Egypt to come here, to Japan. Yami was miserable, even with the friends he made. Until he met you. So, whether or not he likes you, and you know what I mean by 'like', you are the most important person in Yami's life." Malik sat, looking at me for a reply. I was silent.

"So... so this is why you brought me here?"

"Well, would you rather me talk to you with Marik crawling up my shirt?"

I blushed at the thought. "N-no."

"Okay then. So, that's just a little help with figuring out why you like Yami. Or maybe you know why already."

I'm most important in Yami's life? Me? I... I don't know what to think. Even if he doesn't like me how I do... I'm happy enough knowing I'm most important to him. And whatever else there may be underneath that skull of his, I will try to get my answer out of him.

Even if I still don't know why I like him.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Kurisuten: So, this is posted right after the last one. I did spend time on this, and I was going to post it later, but why not now?

Kishichi: I agree. -nod nod-

Kurisuten: But yay! Yuugi-chan is figuring out! I'm so happy!

Kishichi: Me too!

Kurisuten: And I have the best idea ever! I can't tell you though, or else it will spoil the ending of the story! I actually never knew what the ending would be until now! At first, I thought it would be the average, "And Yami finally told Yuugi he loved him, the end."

Kishichi: ...Well, isn't that the ending anyway?

Kurisuten: Well, yeah, but there's a PLOT TWIST.

Kishichi: Oooh, tell me! Tell me!

Kurisuten: Then you'll know! I'm keeping it a surprise!

Kishichi: Awweh.

Kurisuten: It's okay! You'll all love it! Or hate it... But there will still be a lime scene! I figured out the plot for that part, too.

Kishichi: Cool, now this isn't just some fanfic where every chapter is just thought up on the spot!

Kurisuten: Yup!

Kishichi: Ja ne, minna-san!

Kurisuten: Review, please! Ja ne, minna-san!

(NOTE: I'm done with short chapters for now. All others will take at least a week to write, just like the previous one. I will try to get 4000 words or more for each chapter. And that plot twist, you guys will not be able to guess the exact reason. Even if you try. You won't get it. So, I promise you, guessing won't help you. And it won't come in until about the.... fifteenth or fourteenth? Somewhere around there. So, I hope you all still read and review! Oh, and please excuse my random use of Japanese. Ja ne!)


	8. Is This Real

Kurisuten: Mkay, so, I started typing the day after the last chapter was posted. And typed. But I spent time on this one this time. And it still gets posted early.

Kishichi: I'm sure it all paid off.

Kurisuten: You are way to nice to be my genderbended clone.

Kishichi: Nah, just tired.

Kurisuten: ...When I'm tired, I get really energetic and giggly. I get nice when I'm sleepy.

Kishichi: Ohh.

Kurisuten: I get those two confused too. Anyway, I have almost completely thought out my ideas for this story. And I plan to have my super special awesome plot twist around chapter fifteen or sixteen. I'm hoping this is a, at least, tewnty chapter fic.

Kishichi: That's good.

Kurisuten: Yup. I guess so.

Kishichi: So, what are you today? Like, what mood?

Kurisuten: Overly tired.

Kishichi: Oh, okay.

Kurisuten: I'm doing the disclaimer this time. **I do not own YuGiOh, it's characters, song titles used, or ideas that are not mine.**

Kishichi: Good job!

Kurisuten: Uh-huh. Oh, and I have an announcement at the end of this chapter. Please PLEASE read it! It's important!

Kishichi: Yes, please read it!

Kurisuten: Aaaaaaaaand, start chapter.

(Note: There is ANGST. LOTS OF ANGST. Well, in the beginning! There will be fluff again! LATER IN TEH CHAPTER! 8D)

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

So, until one thirty, I did a few things. The first thing was tried to find something to watch on T.V. And found nothing. How does Bakura sit in front of this for hours on end?! So, then I decided to talk to Malik a little more. Not really about anything, but just to talk. And that ended up turning into listening to the most embarrassing stories of Marik and Bakura. Then, we got bored, so we decided to try to make a cake. After raiding the kitchen, we discovered there was no cake mix. So what did we do? Malik and I went to the store to buy cake mix. We couldn't decide between chocolate or strawberry, so we just got both. Back at the house, we _did_ get the cake done (which we make chocolate first), but the kitchen was a mess. And since Bakura and Marik do nothing to keep either house clean, we left the mess for them. We made both cakes, and neither were that bad at all. Finally, after both had been made, frosted, and eaten, it was 1:30, which meant that Ryou, Yami, Bakura, and Marik would be home soon. Or at least all but Yami, who would probably be at his own house. I'd just have to go visit him myself.

First to walk in the front door was Ryou. He took one look at me and Malik on the couch trying to find something to watch on T.V., then a look at the kitchen, then back at us. He opened his mouth to say something, then paused and hesitated, the finally asked, "What was going on here?"

Malik decided to answer that. "I took Yuugi out of school, and we made a cake."

"And that was the _whole_ reason you decided to take him out of school?" he asked, still unsure of whether to believe him or not.

"And I had to talk to him about something important. Without Marik or Bakura around." Malik didn't add Yami into that group, probably afraid Ryou would think otherwise about what he wanted to talk to me about. Since I could explain to Ryou why he talked to me anytime, I decided to add him myself.

"And Yami."

Ryou looked at me, and I think he knew what I meant. "Oh, okay. That makes sense." He looked back at the kitchen. "And you didn't clean the cake mess in the kitchen...?"

"Nope," I said, "we left it for Bakura and Marik."

Malik nodded. Ryou just laughed. "You know they aren't going to clean it up, right?"

"Oh, trust me. They will," Malik said. "Or at least, I can get Marik to."

Me and Ryou looked at Malik, trying to figure out what he meant. How could he get _Marik_ of all people to clean a kitchen?! Well, I mean, unless he told him that him and Marik couldn't..... Oh, so that's what he meant.

Ryou must have caught on, too, because he already had a discusted face at the thought. "Well, I guess that would work..."

"And you could just tell Bakura that he can't watch his T.V. Or eat any of that cake. Or any junk food," I said to Ryou.

"He'd just go to Yami's house."

"Not unless we get Yami in on this too."

"Hey, that is a good idea!" Ryou said, happy he had an idea to get Bakura to get off his lazy ass and do something.

Next, Bakura and Marik walked into the house. They took one look and Ryou, Malik, and I (Ryou decided to join us in trying to find a watchable channel.), then saw the kitchen, then looked back at us.

"Okay, so let me get this straight," Bakura said first. "You take Yuugi out of school, make cake or cupcakes or whatever the hell that is, make a mess of the kitchen, and leave it there."

Malik, who had turned around to look at them, replied, "Yup." Me and Ryou turned around to look at the two as well.

Marik decided to talk next. "And I'm guessing you expect us two clean it up."

"Pretty much," I answered.

Bakura tried not to laugh. "Yeah. That'll happen."

Marik also tried to keep his laughter quiet. "Just get Bakura to do it. I'm not doing that shit."

Malik stood up and walked over to Marik. He whispered something to him, and it must have been what I was thinking he said, because Marik looked devistated. Sighing, he said, "Oh, whatever."

Bakura finally couldn't keep himself from laughing. "Whatever you told Marik, Malik, you're a genius! See ya in an hour. Try not to destroy that kitchen more than it already is." Bakura started walking towards the hallway, and he disappeared within ten seconds.

It was quiet for a minute. Then, Marik asked, "Can you at least help me, Malik?"

"Hell no, do it yourself," was Malik's reply. Ryou and I laughed quietly.

Ten minutes later, the last person walked through the door. I'm assuming it must be Yami. I didn't turn around, though. Ryou and Malik did, and it must have been bad or something, because Ryou nudged my arm to turn around. I did just that, and I had been right. There was Yami. Standing there. Dumbfounded. I was a bit confused about what to think. I didn't know what he was thinking, and I didn't know what _I_ was fully thinking.

"Uhhh..." Yami started to say, "how did you get Marik to clean the kitchen?"

Well, this will be funny to explain. Thankfully, I didn't have to. Malik replied for me.

"Me and Yuugi made a cake, and I got him to clean the kitchen."

"Why did you and Yuugi make a cake?"

"I took him out of school early."

"Why did you take Yuugi out of school early?"

"I got bored. And I didn't know him, so I met him."

"You could have met him after school."

Malik flicked his wrist up and down. "Yeah, but that's no fun."

"What the hell did you two do?" Was Yami getting jealous? That's what it seemed like, especially with the way his tone of voice was.

Malik tried to think of something. "Well-"

Yami interrupted him. "No. Shut up. I want to hear it from Yuugi." Woah, did he just tell Malik to shut up? Now I have to think of something myself!

I struggled to think of something. I could tell Yami was growing slightly impatient. I looked away from Yami for a minute and stared at the floor. I looked back up at Yami, and he was leaning on one leg with his arms crossed. "W-well, uhh..."

"Yes, Yuugi?" Yami's voice sounded irritated. _Very_ irritated.

"M-Malik just took me out of school to talk to me... and stuff...." I tried to think of something that wouldn't sound like I was talking about him.

Malik cut in, jumping up to where his upper body was leaning over the back of the couch. "It wasn't anything-"

Yami cut him off again. "I said shut up! I said I wanted Yuugi to tell me. Not your lying ass!" Malik sunk back down and folded his arms on the back of the couch. Malik? A liar? What was he talking about? "Okay, so, Yuugi, what did you two talk about then?"

I looked to Ryou for some help. Ryou just shrugged. I looked back at Yami, and I saw that he was trying to hold back being jealous, and he succeeded. Partially. But now, he seemed... sad? Disappointed? I couldn't tell anymore. It was too difficult to tell exactly waht he was thinkin at this moment.

"A-actually... I-it's difficult t-to say..." I looked at the ground pathetically. I really am an idiot!

Yami put his weight back on both legs and walked toward the door. "Are you coming, Yuugi?"

I looked up. "W-where?"

"To my house. I've barely hung out with you all day, you know." Yami smiled, but I knew it was forced. I stood up and followed him out the door. Yami left the door open for me, so I shut it as I walked out. I looked at Yami, but he wasn't smiling anymore. I followed him around the fence and up the front lawn to the door. The door had been unlocked and he walked inside. I followed him, and once again, shut the door behind me. Yami was heading towards his own room, and I walked with him in the same direction. For the third time, I shut the door behind me when we walked inside. Yami stood in the middle of the room, back to me. He turned back around.

"Okay, Yuugi, I could tell that you were hiding something, and I think it was something you didn't want either me to know, or everyone else to know. Can you honestly tell me what it was about?" he asked me, keeping his gaze towards the floor. He tried to keep his voice quiet.

I stared at him. He looked like a lost child. I felt bad that I couldn't tell him. Not yet, anyway. I drew in one small breath and said one word. "No."

Yami looked up at me, his eyes meeting mine. "'No'?" I nodded. "Can you tell me why you can't?"

"I actually _can_ tell you what we talked about. I just... I really can't right now," I said quietly. This was my secret that I had to keep to myself, and myself only. As much as everyone, except Yami himself, knows I like him, no one will ever know how much. And that is what I had to keep to myself. But, I feel more and more like a liar the longer I don't tell him. One day, I will. I just have to let myself find out why I even like him in the first place!

Yami breathed, "Why not now?"

I shut my eyes. "I can't tell you that either." It was a lie. I can tell him right now. I can tell him everything and feel so much better about this whole thing. But, because of my insecurity, I have to hide it from him. And I will never know how long I have to keep it a secret.

I opened my eyes to see Yami walking towards me. I wanted to back myself up until I hit the wall, as if to escape through the wall, but I couldn't move my legs. I couldn't remember how to move. He was a foot away from me before he stopped. I looked up at him.

He spoke to me in a soft, quiet voice. "Will you be able to tell me? Not now, but later?"

I looked to the floor, as if it would give me the answer. Yami reached out, and lifted my face to look at him. He held no expression. His hand dropped back to his side. I had to answer him.

"I will."

"Do you promise?"

That was a weird question to ask. At least to me. No one ever asked me to promise anything to anyone. Not as a child, not from a friend, not from my grandpa, no one. I had always promised things to people and they never had to ask me to promise it beforehand, but no one ever _asked_ me to promise. I stared into Yami's eyes, and with a small smile, I replied to him.

"I promise."

Yami smiled back at me. I knew I had been blushing ever since he touched my face, but I did nothing to supress it. I really didn't mind if I blushed anymore. It was just something that happened to often to me, I didn't want to care anymore. Besides, it was a soft blush. A soft, warm blush. It was nothing to be too worried about.

Although, I might want to care now. Yami reached out to me and pulled me into into a hug, and I felt my face heat up rapidly. Why was he hugging me? Why? The air used to be cool, but it was a comfortable coolness; but, when Yami pulled me close to him, not only did my face heat up, but I felt my body warm up as well. Yami was warm, and it was different than from what the temperature would be in the mid-spring or early fall. It was... I can't even think of the word for it. I couldn't remember how to move anymore before, except now I can't move anything. Not even my arms. It wasn't because I was too scared. I was entraced by Yami. Maybe it was the way he felt so close to me. Maybe it was his scent. But this was nothing like when he had accidently fell on me two days ago. This was better than that. I felt secure for what had to be the first time in my life. And, that feeling alone was enough to lift my arms and wrap them around Yami's waist loosely, hugging back. I closed my eyes and tried to memorize this feeling, so I could remember it forever.

I wasn't sure how long we stood there for. It was probably a long time, but I didn't want to move. I could have fallen asleep with my head on Yami's shoulder (or somewhere around there) and I wouldn't mind at all. The way this made me feel was too good to have it slip away so easily. It was wishful thinking, because Yami loosened his grip on me and dropped his arms. I didn't move; I wanted him to move me. Yami was probably confused as to why I didn't let go of him. I decided to make it seem like I was asleep, so maybe he would hold me to him a little bit longer. I think I did fall asleep though, because my head clouded after he released me. I leaned on him for support, and Yami struggled to keep himself standing. He wrapped his arms around my waist and tried to keep me up. I tried to open my eyes, but they suddenly felt heavy.

"Yuugi, you awake?" he whispered. I shook my head. He laughed a little. "Come on, you're going to make me fall over."

I looked up at him. "I'm tired and you're comfortable."

Yami laughed. "Come on, Yuugi. I can't stand up with you asleep on me forever."

"Then you can learn how," I yawned. Just to prove I wasn't moving, I tightened my arms around him.

"Yuugi, seriously, my legs are killing me. I've been standing up all day, and you're leaning on me to top it off."

"Lay down and then I'll sleep on you."

Yami sighed. "You are really stubborn."

"Yeah, I am."

Yami tried to pry my arms from around him, but I kept my hold on him. He was getting aggrivated, and I knew he was. To me, it was funny how much he tried. He gave up after he knew I wasn't going to move.

"Okay, fine," he said at last, "you can sleep against me all you want." I knew there was a catch, since there was no way Yami would just give up like that. He continued, "But if you do, then we can't go over to Ryou's house, and we can't eat any of that cake."

I replied, "It's okay, me and Malik made two cakes."

"Then... we can't eat anything for lunch, and I was going to take you, and I would have payed for it all."

"I'm not that hungry right now."

Yami sighed. He knew I wasn't going to give up so easily forever, either. Then, I could have sworn the air grew darker as Yami thought of an idea. "If you don't want to move, then I'll force you to move."

I looked up at him again. "Oh, really? You've got nothing against me. I am going to stay here for as long as I want and you will not stop me."

Yami smirked. That was never a good thing. And, what do you know, it wasn't. Yami lifted his arms and his hands touched my sides. He wrapped his hands around my thin waist slightly. I blushed heavily. I tried to figure out what he was going to do. I shut my eyes tightly. Was he going to do what I think he was going to do?!

And, guess who was dead wrong and has to mentally slap themselves for having such a dirty mind? Yeah, me. What did Yami had in mind for getting me to let go of him? Yami had started to tickle me across my stomach and sides. My arms immediately drew themselves into myself and I tried to push Yami away from me. I was trying not to laugh, because that was what Yami wanted to accomplish, not for me to let go of him. He wanted me to admit defeat, and giving in by laughing counted. I was trying to stop myself from giggling, but I wasn't doing a good job. I sunk my self to the floor, but Yami just followed me and had a greater advantage of getting me to give up.

"Y-Yami, stop it, my sides hurt!" I forced through my giggle fit.

Yami's reply was, "No."

"W-what?! Why?"

"Well, I can. But I can't right now," Yami replied. Wait, I recognized those words. Was he mocking me?!

"Y-yes, you can!"

Yami smiled. "Nope. I can't."

I finally had to laugh. My sides were both hurting from laughing, and the fact that Yami was tickling me non-stop. I fell backwards onto my back, which had to be the biggest mistake yet. I was finding it difficult to move my arms and stop Yami from tickling me anymore. I resorted to my legs to try to push Yami away from me, but he had easily solved that problem by sitting on my legs. I tried to kick Yami off of me, but I was easily failing at that.

"O-okay, Y-Yami, y-you w-w-win!" I tried to say through my laughs.

Yami smirked. "What was that? I can't hear you, you're going to have to speak up."

I tried to say it again. "Y-you w-win!"

"Still can't hear you, Yuugi."

"I-I c-c-can't t-talk i-if you-you're t-tickling m-me!"

"You want me to keep tickling you? I can do that." Yami must be enjoying this. Greatly enjoying this.

"N-no! Y-you win! S-s-stop tickling m-me!"

Yami did finally stop tickling me when I said this. "Oh, you admitted defeat and wanted me to stop? Why didn't you just say that?"

He _really_ must be enjoying this. "I did."

Yami acted surprised. "You _did?_ Oh, I must not have heard you right."

I crossed my arms, still laying on the floor with Yami on my legs. I tried to pout cutely. "You heard me just fine."

Yami tried to look confused. "What? There was no way I could hear you with all of that laughing."

"Just get off me already. My legs are falling asleep," I said, trying to kick him off of me.

"Excuse me, but at least say _please_," Yami argued, crossing his arms with a fake pout.

"Get off!" I sat up and tried to push him off of me, as well as tried to kick him off.

"When you say 'please', I'll get off!"

"No, just get off!" I yelled, still trying to push Yami off. I knew he was just playing around, and he's not actually trying to hurt me, and so was I. I had a big smile on my face the whole time, and I'm sure Yami did too.

Yami finally grabbed my wrists and pinned them over my head, pushing me backwards. I stared up at him. Blushing heavily, I froze. Yami leaned his face towards mine. I blushed even more, and he was only an inch away from me. I shut my eyes as tightly as I could.

"Say 'please', and I'll move," Yami whispered.

I opened my eyes as fast as I could. I couldn't say anything. I couldn't move my arms or legs. But, I didn't want to move. I didn't want Yami to move. I'd be happy with just laying here forever. My heart pounded loudly, and my breathing was uneven. I gulped.

"P-please..." I whimpered.

Yami released my arms and sat up again. He moved from off my legs and sat next to me, legs crossed. I refused to move. I still felt the warmth of Yami's face. My legs were gaining their feeling back, and my arms could move freely again.

"Was that so hard, Yuugi?" Yami teased. I nodded. He sighed. "Just to say one simple word?" I nodded again. Sitting up, I turned my head toward Yami, and he was about to get the interrogation of his life.

"What did you do that for?!" I exclaimed, trying to even out my breathing.

Yami shrugged. "I don't know."

"How do you not know?!"

"It's just fun to mess with you."

"No it's not!"

"Yeah it is. You just don't know how cute you are when you're blushing."

"Why would you say it's cute?!"

He looked at me. "You don't have to be Anzu to think you're cute."

"Yeah, but why would _you_ say it?!"

Yami sighed. "I just said, I don't have to be some retard girly-girl to think you're cute. You could be confused for a baby panda."

I suddenly realized what Yami said. He called me 'cute'! Wait, that doesn't necessarily mean he likes me. I mean, everyone thinks I'm cute. Hell, _Bakura _and _Marik_ probably think I'm cute.

"...A baby panda?"

"A baby panda."

We stared at each other, as if trying to read the other's mind. Finally, Yami sighed and stood up. "Okay, Yuugi, let's go back to Ryou's house, then."

I stood up quickly, stuttering uncontrolably as I spoke. "I-I h-have to g-go back home s-soon!"

Yami copied Malik's motions, flicking his wrist up and down at me. "He doesn't ever mind you hanging out with me after school."

"B-but he doesn't know I didn't go to school! What if he was looking out the window and saw you or Ryou and not me?!"

"He wasn't. He trusts you, remember? Besides, what if he's not there?"

I looked at the floor. Yami then took my wrist and dragged me out of the room. I pulled my hand away. "I-I can walk by myself, you know! P-plus, my wrist hurts..."

Yami nodded. "Okay, that's fine." He then grabbed my hand instead. "If I don't drag you along, you won't ever move." I guess he was right in a way. Yami walked me out of the room and back to the front door. Although, he reached for the doorknob, wrapped his hand around it, and stood still. I tilted my head slightly. I gripped Yami's hand and moved forward to look at him. He stared at his own hand. I was confused. Yami then turned his head to look at the hand holding mine. He looked back at the other hand, and his shoulders shook slightly.

"Y-Yami?" I asked, concerned.

He answered my call with a question. "Yuugi, I hurt you, didn't I?"

I took a small step backward, widening my eyes. "N-no, you didn't! What are you talking about?"

"When I grabbed your wrists. Did I hurt you?"

"N-no! You didn't hurt me!"

"Yuugi, I know I did. Please, just tell me if I hurt you. I want to hear you say it. I need to know from you, not my paranoia."

Is... is Yami feeling guilty? For thinking he hurt me? What is he thinking right now...?

With my free hand, I placed it on top of Yami's hand on the doorknob. Yami looked at me in confusion. I smiled at him. "You didn't. It's okay."

"But when I grabbed your wrist before we left, you said that they hurt..."

I shook my head. "I wasn't talking about my wrists."

Yami opened his mouth slightly, about to say something, but instead he smiled at me. I removed my hand from his, though still gripping his other. He opened the front door and walked out. I walked after him and shut the door. He lead me back to Ryou's house, and he never let my hand go.

When we walked into the house, Marik had been done cleaning the kitchen and Bakura had joined them in the living room, watching some cartoon show. They immediately turned to us, and all four of them jumped up from the couch and crouded around us. Yami and I had backed into the door and they just moved closer to us. Then, from left the right (which would be right to left from their perspective), they spoke.

"What the hell were you two doing?!" Marik exclaimed.

"We could hear you from here! Over the volume of the T.V.!" Malik yelled.

"Not to mention Yuugi is blushing more than usual AND you two are holding hands!" Bakura shouted.

Ryou nodded twice, hands in fists, finger-side of the hands pressed against his chest.

I realized I _was_ still holding Yami's hand. I immediately let go and pressed both hands against the door, along with my entire body.

"W-well, I, umm..." I tried to find words to tell them, but the words were unorganized in my head, and I couldn't find the right ones.

Yami saved me by saying what I wanted to say to them. "We were just talking."

Marik and Bakura both said in unison, "Bull shit!"

Malik followed with, "We heard loud noises!"

"And I definatelly heard Yuugi telling you to stop more than once!" Ryou added.

I blushed heavily. Were the walls really that paper-thin?

"Look, we were playing around and I was _tickling_ him," Yami gritted through his teeth.

Ryou looked convinced, and Malik looked half convinced, but Marik and Bakura weren't buying it.

"No way, there had to be more to it than that!" Bakura yelled.

"There _was_ nothing more to it!" Yami shouted back.

"Then why the hell is Yuugi blushing so much?" Marik questioned.

"When does he _not_ blush?" Yami argued.

Ryou grabbed my hand and quickly pulled me out of the semi-circle. Malik sighed and followed us as well, bored of the fight already. Ryou lead me to his room and Malik shut the door.

I sighed. "Thanks, Ryou."

He smiled. "No problem."

"Are the walls really that paper-thin?" I asked.

Malik talked next. "Nope. I dunno how to tell you this, but we got bored and decided to listen through the window of Yami's bedroom."

"There's a window?!" Was there really? I never knew that...

"Yeah, but Yami doesn't like bright rooms in the morning, so he covered the window with tin foil and put a screen in front of it to make it blend with the wall," Malik explained.

"Oh, okay, makes sence." Then, everything finally sunk into my brain. "Wait, you were _listening_ to us?!"

Malik nodded. Then, Ryou defended themselves by saying, "I wanted to stop them, I really did. But... I was a bit curious myself."

"You could have stopped them, you know!"

Malik then got tired of the yelling. "Okay, okay, let's drop it already. You're both giving me a headache." I sighed and nodded.

It was Ryou's turn to question me. "So, did Yami really tickle you?"

I sighed loudly. "Yes, that is really what happened."

"Okay, I was just asking."

Then, Malik got curious. "So, what happened?"

"What do you mean?"

"Oh, you know. How did he start tickling you?" Malik had a devilish grin on his face. It kind of scared me!

"O-oh, well.... We were talking... and Yami hugged me, and I didn't want to let go, so he tickled me to get me to let go... and then we ended up on the ground-"

"What?!" Ryou exclaimed. Malik cringed and held his ear.

"Let me explain!" I shouted at Ryou. "And I tried to kick him away from me, so he sat on my legs so I couldn't, so I tried telling him he won and he could get off me, and he said to say 'please' and he'd get off. So, I told him 'no' and tried to get him off myself, and Yami pinned my arms above my head-"

"Wait- what?!" Malik shouted. Ryou held his ear and winced.

"Shut up, will you?!" I yelled. "Yami got really _really_ close to my face and asked me again to say 'please', so I did and he got off of me and yeah...."

They both stared at me in awe. I looked at them. "What?"

"So. _How_ close to your face?" Ryou asked.

"Like, an inch away."

Malik pulled me forward and got as close as Yami did. He then asked me, "This close?"

"Y-yes, that close. Can you let me go now...?" I asked hesitantly. Ryou tried not to laugh.

Malik let go of my arm and apologized, "Oh, right, I'm sorry."

Then, Ryou asked another question that was as bad as the first one. "Did he _kiss _you?"

I blushed heavily. "N-no! We didn't!"

"Did you want to?" Malik asked.

I looked at the ground. "M-maybe a little..." I answered quietly.

Ryou whistled. "Ooooh, you must _really_ like him then!"

"S-shut up!" I shouted. Then, quietly, I added, "What if _he_ hears you?" I emphasized the word 'he', talking about Yami.

Malik then had a smirk across his face. Then, he did something I never would have imagined. "Yuugi wants to kiss Yami!" he shouted through the wall, in the direction of where Yami, Bakura, and Marik were fighting. I jumped towards Malik and put my hand over his mouth.

"Shut up!" I seethed through my teeth.

Ryou added, "Yeah, that was a little mean, Malik."

"Yami deserves to know!" Malik exclaimed, successfully removing my hand from his mouth.

"I don't want him to know!"

"Why not?!"

"What if he doesn't like me?!"

"He obviously does if he pins your arms and legs down! Hell, all he'd have to do is make out with you and he wouldn't _have_ to pin you down!"

"Shut up! That doesn't mean anything!"

"Yes it does!"

Ryou said, quietly, "Umm... guys?"

"How does the fact that I was pinned down under him mean anything?!" I yelled back at Malik, not hearing Ryou.

"Because no one would do that if they didn't!"

"Yes they would! Ever heard of wrestling?!"

"Guys..." Ryou said, a little louder this time.

"They don't completely pin them down and get inches from their face!"

"That's not the point, Malik!"

"Hey, guys..."

"The point is that he doesn't just like you, he _wants_ you, Yuugi!"

"No he does not!"

"Yes, he does too!"

"No!"

"Yes!"

Ryou then grabbed both of us from the back of our shirts and pulled us apart. "Guys!"

We stood dumbfounded by Ryou's sudden action. We looked at him with wide eyes.

"Yeah?" we asked in unison.

"Do you not see who is in the doorway?!" Ryou yelled.

Me and Malik turned our heads to see none other than Marik, Bakura, and Yami standing in the doorway- Wait, _Yami?!_

I made a small wave towards them. "H-hi..."

They all stood there with their mouths hung open slighly ajar. Yami seemed the most surprised. "Umm, Yuugi?"

"Y-yeah?"

Yami looked like he was about to say something, but he decided not to. Something tells me I screwed up big time. I looked at him in horror, hoping he didn't hear too much of that. If he heard _any_ of that I think I might die.

I asked, "Umm, how much of that did you hear...?"

"Not very much," Yami said. "I walked in when you told Malik that something wasn't the point of whatever you guys were arguing about."

Ryou added, "Yeah, I first tried to get your attention when I heard Marik say 'No way, really?'. Then I heard Bakura say that they going to come in here to watch the fight, and yeah."

That's still bad! That means Yami heard Malik say that he wants me! Yami, I mean. That Yami wants me. That's still emarrassing! He's oviously going to know that we were talking about him! Plus, he probably heard Malik say that I wanted to kiss him! Wait, Yami said that Malik was a liar... So maybe he thinks he's doing this to cause drama? Or maybe he didn't hear him at all... Either way, he still heard that comment when he walked in the room!

Then, Bakura waved at us. "You guys just continue fighting. I didn't get to see much."

I stared at him. If I keep fighting, Yami will eventually figure out I was talking about him. And that was not going to happen.

Malik shrugged and walked towards Marik, though looking at Bakura as he talked. "Nah, I'm done fighting. I'm going to let Yuugi think whatever it is he wants to think, and I'm going to finish up some business with Marik-kun. Aren't I?" He looked up at Marik, who had put an arm around Malik's waist.

Marik clicked his tounge. "You guys can feel free to leave if you don't want to listen to us." They turned around and walked out of the room. Me, Yami, Ryou, and Bakura all stared at each other.

"Anyone want to go eat some of that cake?" Ryou asked.

Bakura answered, "Only if we bring it to Yami's house. If I have to listen to those two again, I'm going to kill myself."

Yami raised his hand. "Seconded."

I nodded.

After all of what happened today, I'd rather it not have to end with listening to Malik and Marik doing... whatever it is that they're doing.

Though, I will thank Malik later. For helping me discovering another piece of why I like Yami.

That piece is Yami's playful attitude.

And there's also another piece to it.

He has no intention, ever, to hurt me. He wants to protect me.

From everyone else. And even himself.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Kurisuten: I need to get this announcement out now! **IF I GET 50 REVIEWS, I WILL AWARD YOU ALL WITH A CHAPTER IN YAMI'S POINT OF VIEW!!!!!!  
**

Kishichi: Oooh, awesome!

Kurisuten: Anyway, this was also done in one day, due to the fact that it's a Saturday and everyone hates me and doesn't want to hang out with me. Thus, resulting in this. A long chapter in one day. AND I spell and grammer checked everything.

Kishichi: Wow, that's amazing.

Kurisuten: Yeah, I know! And it only took nine hours, not including watching Puzzleshipping AMVs and eating food!

Kishichi: Dang. Oh, you forgot talking to Jon on the phone.

Kurisuten: Yeah, and that.

Kishichi: But I thought the lime scene would be this chapter with the way things were going!

Kurisuten: Nope. I already have my plan for that scene.

Kishichi: The lime should have been this chapter!

Kurisuten: Yeah, I know.

Kishichi: But yes, please review! Everyone! EVERYONE THAT READS THIS must review!

Kurisuten: Yeah! I will seriously make a chapter with Yami's point of view if I can get 50 reviews! So PLEASE PLEASE PLEEEEEASE REVIEW!

Kishichi: PLEASEEEE.

Kurisuten: Okay, they get it.

Kishichi: Oh, okay.

Kurisuten: Ja ne, minna-san! AND PLEASE REVIEW!


	9. Fall to Pieces

Kurisuten: I must really have no life to type this so quicky.

Kishichi: But I'm sure it was all good.

Kurisuten: Yup! I'm so much happier today!

Kishichi: Because of all of your lovely reviewers?

Kurisuten: YES! Only 20 more reviews to go, guys! You can do it!

Kishichi: Go, go, lovely reviewers!

Kurisuten: Anyway, I've had one person so far point out the YuGiOh The Abridged Series reference last chapter. Did anyone else?

Kishichi: The baby panda one?

Kurisuten: ...You just told them. Way to go. But it's okay! I have completely thought out the ENTIRE chapter outline for the lime scene! And you guys don't get to know until later! X3

Kishichi: That's horrible!

Kurisuten: Don't worry, it'll be fine.

Kishichi: ...I just realized, we're like the "Yami" and "Hikari" of each other.

Kurisuten: I better be the goddamn yami.

Kishichi: You are.

Kurisuten: YES! Anyway, disclaimer.

Kishichi: **Kurisuten Ichikish does not own YuGiOh, any references, song titles, or unoriginal ideas.**

Kurisuten: Aaaaand chapter start!

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

For five whole minutes, Yami, Ryou, Bakura, and I all sat on the couch, staring at the T.V. and looking for something at least partially watchable. We never did get to eat any of the cake. We discovered those bastards, Marik and Malik, took both cakes with them. Not that I want any anymore.

Bakura stood up. "Okay, I'm hungry and I need some goddamn food."

The three of us looked up at him. "Then go eat something," Yami replied.

Bakura walked into the kitchen and was apparently looking for something. We watched him, trying to figure out what he was looking for.

"Bakura, what the hell are you looking for?" Yami asked him, giving up on guessing. Bakura looked like he didn't hear him, but he must have to have replied.

"Yami, where the hell is the peanut butter?" he asked impatiently.

I raised my eyebrow. Why was he looking for peanut butter? Was Bakura seriously going to make a peanut butter sandwich? That's slightly healthy! I didn't know Bakura could comprehend anything remotely good for you.

Yami turned back to the T.V. "I don't have any."

Bakura hit the counter. "What do you mean you don't have any damn peanut butter?!"

"I just said I didn't have any."

"How do you not have any?!"

"I just don't."

Bakura kept searching frantically, only to get more and more frustrated. Ryou sighed.

"Bakura, there is no peanut butter. Why don't you give up and look for something else to eat?" he said.

"Because I want a peanut butter sandwich! And I can't make a sandwich if there is no peanut butter for me to make a sandwich!" Was Bakura seriously whining?

It was my turn to suggest something. "Maybe there's peanut butter at your house. You should check there."

Bakura looked at me with wide eyes. "And have to listen to ANY of what those psycopaths are doing?! Hell no!"

Speak for yourself.

Yami finally had enough of Bakura. "There. Is. No. Peanut butter. Drop it already."

"You know what, shut the hell up!" he snapped at Yami. I sighed loudly, grabbed the remote, and turned the volume up so I wouldn't have to listen to Bakura's bitching and complaining.

"Why don't you shut up and go buy some?" Yami shouted back.

"Why don't you shut up and screw your little boyfriend like we all know you want to?!"

I blushed heavily at Bakura's comment. Ryou noticed, because he was laughing to himself quietly. I elbowed him and slumped in my seat, crossing my arms across my chest.

Yami stood up. "Why don't you make me?!"

"I'm sure Yuugi would like it!"

And there's another level of blushing broken.

Bakura continued his statement. "Hell, he'd probably be the one to _start _it!"

And another level.

He continued even more. "He probably wants you to screw him into the goddamn ground!"

I didn't think it was possible, but I was blushing so much, I could take my tempurature and it would be well over a hundred. Ryou saw my face and started laughing uncontrolably. I elbowed him to get him to shut up, but I think I made it worse. Bakura and Yami turned their attention toward me and Ryou, and Yami looked puzzled. I looked up at him, surprisingly not turning into a deeper shade of red, looked away and hid my face with my hands. Ryou tried to stop laughing, and eventually did. A while later.

Ryou looked at Bakura and said, "Okay, stop making comments about Yuugi and Yami, or I'm afraid he'll have a stroke from all of that blood to the head."

Bakura scoffed. "It's true anyway. I should stop pointing out the obvious."

Yami looked around the floor, looking for something. I watched him through my fingers. He found what he was looking for, picked it up, and chucked it at Bakura's head. I moved my hands just in time to see Bakura get hit in the face with a shoe. I tried not to laugh, and Ryou was already on the ground holding his sides. Bakura rubbed his nose.

"What the hell did you do that for?!"

Yami sat back down, crossing his arms. "You wouldn't shut up."

Bakura glared at Yami furiously and picked the shoe up from the floor and threw it back. Without even looking at Bakura, Yami moved his head forward, completely dodging the throw. I had less than a second to get out of the way, so I completely dove downwards, clinging to whatever was closest. The shoe zoomed by my head, barely missing. It hit the wall and dropped lifelessly to the floor. Whatever I clung onto to avoid a direct hit was familiar to me somehow.

"Would you mind not cutting the blood circulation in my arm off? My arm is going a bit numb," the voice of what I was clinging to said. I looked up, and I had been holding Yami the entire time! Face turning an even deeper crimson, I let go of Yami quickly and crossed my arms across my chest tightly. Yami laughed. "I didn't say you had to let go." I looked up at Yami from the corner of my eye. He wore a smile that could brighten any moonless night. It really was beautiful. I looked at the table in front of me and uncrossed my arms, letting them fall loosely to my sides. Then, I felt a presence on my left hand. I turned my head to gaze at it and saw a hand that wasn't mine. I followed up the arm that it was connected to with my eyes. I saw a shoulder, then letting my eyes travel further up, I saw Yami. He still wore the smile. Smiling myself, I looked back at my feet covered in white fabric propped up on the table.

Then, a sudden voice was heard in the kitchen. "Holy shit, Yami, you liar! I found peanut butter!"

I looked over Yami's shoulders to see Bakura barring a small jar of peanut butter. He opened it savagely, only to be disappointed. "There's hardly any left, you bastard!"

Nonetheless, he had already taken out a plate, two slices of bread, and a knife and was already spreading peanut butter onto a slice of bread. Rolling my eyes, I turned off the television with the remote, since no one was watching it anyway. My left hand still had the warm right hand of Yami occupying it. My cheeks tinted a soft pink, remembering the events from earlier. I had memorized the exact feeling of his arms around me, the warmth he emitted. I memorized it all. And now I recognized it again. I shut my eyes slowly. I was deep in thought, trying to comprehend my reasons for liking Yami as much as I did. I have never felt this way before, and I wanted to at least know why I feel the way I do.

My thoughts were quickly interrupted the very second Bakura returned to the couch and plopped onto it, choosing a spot between me and Ryou. I jumped from Bakura scaring me, and the fact that I was ripped out of my thoughts so quickly.

"I say we watch a movie. We've got nothing else to do, you know," Bakura said through a mouthful of bread.

Yami shrugged. "Sure, why not."

"Let's watch a horror movie!" Bakura said, acting like a little kid who wanted his mother to buy him a box of cookies.

My eyes widened. "N-no!" I shouted, drawing my knees to my chest. Yami gripped my hand in reassurance.

Bakura scoffed. "Why not?"

"H-horror movies s-scare me!" I yelled at Bakura.

I recieved a loud sigh from Bakura. "Whatever. Ruin all of the fun, why don't you."

"I don't even have any horror movies," Yami said.

"Yes you do!"

"What horror movie do I have, then?"

Bakura took another large bite from his sandwich. "That one movie with those whore-twins... Mary-kate and Ashely, I think. _That_ shit is scarier than hell." Bakura shuttered. "Ugh, girl movies."

Yami put his face in his hand. The one that wasn't holding mine. "That was Anzu's movie. Not mine."

"Yeah right."

Yami looked at Bakura with a mean glare. "If that movie was really mine, would I have it in plain sight where everyone could see it?"

Bakura shrugged. "I dunno. I mean, you're holding Yuugi's hand and everyone can see."

With that comment, Ryou looked over both me and Bakura to see if he was really serious. "They are?!" he squealed. Ryou gasped. "Oh my god, they are!"

I blushed deeper. Yami's hand twitched slightly, moving it to where only his fingers were touching my hand. I was confused by this slightly. But I was also sad and angry. Sad that some of the warmth was gone with one movement of the hand. Angry that Bakura had to be the one to cause Yami to move his hand!

"You know what, Bakura?" Yami finally said. "If you really want to be an asshole about everything, you can get out of my damn house."

Bakura stood up, clenching his fist. "I can what?"

"Get out of my house. Now. I'm not kidding."

Bakura was dumbfounded. Still holding the plate he ate the sandwich on (sandwich gone, by the way), he walked to the kitchen and threw it in the sink with enough force the break it. Without a word, he walked out of the house, not forgetting to slam the door on the way out. The living room became silent. It was an akward silence. Ryou took in a deep breath, stood up, and looked at Yami and I.

"I'm going to go find Bakura, okay?" He smiled akwardly before following Bakura out of the house. The living room had such an akward atmosphere, saying anything would just make it more akward. I didn't move. Neither did Yami. I looked at my feet, hoping they'd suddenly give me the answer to whatever question I had asked it. I slowly and carefully moved my neck to look at Yami, just to see what he was looking at. Yami had been gazing at me, and when I looked at him, he quickly turned away. I took at his face before turning my head forward again. I shut my eyes and tried not to let myself cry. Cry about how happy I am. Cry about how unsure I am. Cry about how perfect this moment really is.

"Yuugi?" Yami whispered quietly. I looked up at him, my eyelids half closed.

"Hu-un?" I muttered, aknowledging him with an auditable hum.

Yami paused. "Are you okay?"

I blinked, though not opening my eyes any more than they were. "I'm fine."

"You don't look fine..."

"What doesn't look okay about me?"

Yami closed his eyes for a moment. "Please tell me what's on your mind."

I opened my eyes a little more. I struggled to find an answer to his plea. I had a perfect answer. I could tell him everything about liking him. But I can't tell him anything about that! Why can't I? I would feel so much better if I did! So... why couldn't I?

"Yami?" I whispered to him.

"Yes?"

I closed my eyes. "Can you tell me about your childhood?"

Yami raised an eyebrow. "Wha- why do you want to know what?"

"Malik told me you had a horrible life. Can you tell me about it?"

Yami sighed. "Unfortunately, I do not remember much. What I do remember is when I was about five, my entire village being burned to the ground, trying to wipe out any remains of the royal family. Me and Malik escaped from there before we were killed as well. Marik and Bakura were from the ones trying to attack us, but they befriended Malik. They knew my family was the actual royal family and disliked me for it. Malik was really the only one that accepted me. That's really all I remember from back then."

I looked at Yami in shock. This was what Malik was talking about? Tears made their way to the brims of my eyes. "Y-Yami, that's horrible."

He looked at me with wide eyes. "Why are you the one crying? This wasn't your fault! And it happened to me, not you."

I sniffed. "I-I know, b-but that is r-really horrible, a-and I-I feel really bad fo-for y-you."

"You feel bad for me?"

"Y-yeah, you went through your life w-without remembering being cared f-for by a-anyone." I hiccupped.

Yami put an arm around my shoulder. "If you have to cry, go ahead."

I didn't want to cry in front of Yami. I really didn't. It felt weird to cry in front of him so easily. But, he didn't care if I cried. I slid my knees behind me and buried my face in Yami's chest. I didn't cry as hard as I thought, but tears fell from my cheeks freely. I gripped Yami's shirt, squeezing my eyes shut. Why was _I _the one crying? This was Yami's past, not mine.

But it was.

Both of my parents died in the same place, in the same night. They both died in a fire, just like Yami's parents had. Except I watched them burn. I watched them tell me to run away before I was swallowed by flames as well. I watched the arsonist light the fire and flee from the house. I watched everything. I witnessed every detail. I remember how hot the atmosphere was. I remember being pulled out by the firemen. I remember the neighbors and bypassers stand and watch the house go up in flames. I remember one of them hug my shoulders with their hands. I remember letting one single tear fall from my face. Everything. I will always remember everything. All of the angst, sadness, and frustration. But this was the first time I had actually cried my heart out about it. I know how Yami felt about everyone he cared about dying in one fell swoop. I know his pain, and he knows mine.

I let my tears fall onto Yami's shirt, and neither of us did anything to stop it. And for the longest time, we stayed like this. Even after tears had stopped flowing. I layed against Yami's chest, holding onto his shirt like I would suddenly slip away from him, and Yami held me close to him, not letting me go. I didn't open my eyes, but I didn't close them as tight anymore. I let myself drift into a light sleep, untightening my hold on Yami and just let it lay there in the same spot, maybe letting it sliding downwards a few centimeters. Yami relaxed himself. The tears that had fallen were well dried up by now; all that was left were cool spots of evaporated water. All we did was lay there. No words had to be said. The silence became comfortable again. Everything was okay now.

I looked up at Yami, and he looked down at me. I had tear-stains on my face, my eyes were trimmed with red, and my cheeks were plastered with pink. Even with my apperance, Yami still smiled at me. I smiled back, and I knew everything was okay again. I layed my head back on Yami's chest, pressing my ear to him.

"Yami?" I asked quietly.

"Yeah, Yuugi?" he replied. I felt the vibrations of his voice in his chest.

"I'm sorry."

"Sorry? For what?"

"If I hadn't had asked you that question, I never would have had to cry in front of you like I did."

"Yes, but if you haven't cried, then I wouldn't have been able to help you."

I looked back up at him, my head still laying on Yami. "Help me? What do you mean?"

"Do you remember yesterday morning? How I was talking to your grandpa?"

I nodded. "Yes, I remember."

"He told me what heppened to your parents. He told me how you never cried about it. And I knew you wanted to."

"So you told me about your own horrible past to make me feel bad for you and cry?!"

"No, Yuugi. I meant I knew you needed to cry about it, and I wanted to be the one to comfort you when you do."

I blinked. "Y-you mean that?"

Yami nodded, smiling. "Yes, Yuugi, I do mean that."

I smiled warmly, closing my eyes. I don't care about anything that happens to me or Yami. I'd be fine just knowing I can lay here forever. Never once moving. Just laying here with Yami until the day I die. I fell into a sleep that was like no other times I had slept before. Because not once was Yami there with me.

Eventually, though, Yami shook me awake. I looked up tiredly at him, and he gave me a look as if to say, 'Morning is long over, time to wake up.' I gave a tired moan and curled up against Yami, pulling my knees up to my chest. He laughed. I smiled to myself. I like his laugh. It was different. A good different. Yami pushed me to where I was sitting upright, and he stood up. I whined quietly, but all he did was smile down at me. I crossed my arms and finally stood up next to him.

Yami had walked me home soon after. We went back to Ryou's house to find him and Bakura on the front porch, Bakura ranting about how 'Yami is such a horrible bitch and needs to get over his dumbass self'. I thought it was pretty funny, though, especially with how long he had to have been ranting for. Ryou gave me a pleading look, but I laughed a bit before walking into the house. I retrieved my backpack from the living room (and the house was WAY too quiet.), and Yami walked all the way to my house, just to make sure I get there safe. We weren't really hurrying to get to my house. In fact, we walked as slow as we possibly could. We really didn't want to leave each other so soon, but I had to go home to my grandpa sooner or later. Yami waved good-bye to me, and I waved back, smiling a genuine smile. A real genuine smile. Yami smiled back and turned around to go back to his own house. I sighed to myself and walked into the house. My grandpa was already cooking dinner when I arrived.

He turned around and greated me with a smile. "Oh, there you are, Yuugi. I was wondering when you'd come back."

I nodded at him. "I was just at Yami's, Grandpa. It's all good." I walked over to the foot of the stairs and kicked my shoes off.

I heard my grandpa laugh. "You two must be really good friends, considering you two always are together after school and on weekends. I'm starting to think you'll never come home to me one day!"

I had to laugh as well. It's hard to leave Yami everyday. "Don't worry, Grandpa, I'm not going to do that to you."

"That's good. I made dinner for two people and I wouldn't have been able to eat all of it by myself!" He laughed again. I smiled and shook my head. He'll never change, will he? I hope he doesn't.

I trudged up the stairs and walked down the hall to my room. I dropped my backpack near the door after I walked inside. I fell towards the bed and layed there for what seemed like forever. The sheets were cold. It was a lonely kind of cold. I rolled over to my side and stared at my hand. My left hand. The one Yami had been holding. It looked the same as it had been. With my right hand, I felt my face. I could still feel the dried tear trails. I was going to have to wash my face. I didn't feel like myself anymore. And I finally felt like myself. Just by being close to Yami. I didn't feel like myself. I felt cold and alone again. I closed my eyes and tried to remember the feeling of Yami's arms around me. I tried to remember the smell of Yami up close. I tried to remember every feature of those eyes of his. I tried to remember the warmth I felt from being held like I did. But, I couldn't. I couldn't remember. I needed to be with him to remember everything. It wasn't fair. It wasn't fair that everything I memorized about him so I could always remember it was gone from my memory once he was gone. I felt pathetic. Pathetic and unworthy of loving him. I opened my eyes again and gazed at my hand once more. I tried to feel alive.

I heard my grandpa yell from downstairs it was dinnertime. I pushed myself from the bed and dragged myself out of the room. I wanted to wash my face first, just in case the horrible tear-stains were noticable. I walked into the bathroom and shut the door, locking it on the way in. I stared at myself in the mirror. Something was different. It wasn't because of my bloodshot eyes. It wasn't because of the faint trails of dried tears. I stared into my eyes, and I noticed a shine that wasn't there before. I studied it for a minute, and I realized.

It was the same shine in Yami's eyes.

Yami was always with me. I don't know why I didn't realize it before. I suddenly felt a fuzzy warmth from my toes to my face. I felt alive again. There were no words to possibly describe how I felt right then. It was too confusing in my head to pick the right words. It made me smile.

I washed every trace of tears from my face, dried it off, and ran back down the stairs to greet my grandpa in the kitchen. He chuckled.

"Someone looks peppy to eat today."

I nodded, pulling out a chair at the small dining table to eat. "I'm really hungry."

"I can tell!" he replied, placing a plate of spaghetti in front of me. He pulled out a chair for himself to sit as well. "I'm sorry I couldn't come up with anything better for dinner. I forgot to go to the store earlier to buy somethings for dinner."

I shook my head, already devouring the food. "No, it's okay. This is really good!"

My grandpa laughed again. "As long as you like it, I'm fine with it."

Within minutes, I had eaten what was placed in front of me and was already halfway up the stairs to go back to my room. I remembered something, quickly ran back down, and leaned over the railing to peer into the kitchen.

"Thanks for dinner!" I said, running back up the stairs. I heard my grandpa's hearty laugh once more before I was in my room laying on the pillow.

I stared at the ceiling. I still felt the warm feeling from where Yami touched my hand. I felt the warmth from his arms encircling me. I felt the warmth on my face from how close he had gotten. I could still feel the breath on my face. I could still remember his slow breathing pattern. Everything I felt, and everything I tried to remember, I remembered. The only thing missing was Yami himself. As much as I do want him with me all of the time, I couldn't have that. I wasn't even away from him for that long. Just a few hours a day, not counting the eight hours of sleep I get a night. Though, as well as when I'm with him, when I'm away from Yami, I could still slowly figure out the puzzle of why I love Yami so much.

No, wait, I didn't love Yami.

No, I didn't. This wasn't love. Not even close.

This was being _in_ love with him.

No, not love. I'm in love with him.

I closed my eyes for a little bit, then reopened them and sat up to look at the clock. It was 6:42. Was I with Yami for that long? Not that I mind much, but it just took me by surprise. I layed back down to search for patterns in the ceiling as I thought. Was this the missing feeling I haven't felt my entire life? I mean, I've loved people before. I loved my parents, my friends, and my grandpa and stuff. But... being _in_ love... it's completely different. You feel like you're floating on air, and your heart pounds everytime you're around that person. You're always a little clumsier when around them. You get lightheaded when they accidently touch your hand, and you almost faint when they hold you close to them. You'd never want to have to cry, in fear they might cry with you because you don't want yourself to be the one who causes them to cry. You're whole day is turned upside-down the minute you see them. They will never leave your mind. They're the first thing you think of in the morning. They're the last thought you have when you finally fall asleep. And when you do fall asleep, you wish they were there to hold you.

That's what I feel like.

I could go on about what this feeling is like, but eventually it would turn into the Encyclopedia of Being in Love. A full thousand pages. More than that. Never in my life have I felt so... alive. This was the first time I've been so sure about my feelings. Yet, I'm unsure about how to let them get to Yami himself. I told myself that I would tell him about my feelings after I was sure about why I have these feelings.

But what if I never find out?

Yami would never get to find out. And I want him to know. I need him to know. If he never finds out, then I would continue to live life like an open cut. You know when you accidently cut your finger with a piece of paper or something, and you go to wash it or put hand sanitizer on? The second the water hits the cut, the stinging pain is too unbearable. That's what I feel like everyday Yami doesn't know. Although, Yami's caring ways take the pain away, and I forget about everything but him. I just... I don't want to have to lose him.

And is it just me, or is love the most confusing emotion ever?

There was a knock at the door. I knew it was my grandpa.

"Come in," I said through the door, still staring at the ceiling. The door opened, and my grandpa stood at the door.

"Yuugi, you okay in here?" he asked, a worried look on his face.

That was a strange question. I've never felt better, actually. I sat up and looked at him. "I'm fine. Why do you ask?"

"You just seemed so hurried to come up here. I was wondering if anything was wrong."

I shook my head. "No, I'm fine."

"Everything alright at school?"

"Yup."

"Everything fine with Yami?"

My heart sped up. "Y-yeah, everything's fine with him."

"Hmm, you seem nervous about that topic. You sure everything's okay with you and Yami?"

"Totally positive!"

He looked at me. "Alright, I'll believe you. I better not come up here again to find a knife through your heart and a huge pool of blood around your body."

"Wha- why could I do that?!"

"Love's a powerful thing, Yuugi. You never know."

"H-how'd you know I liked Yami?!" I quickly covered my mouth. I did _not_ just say that.

My grandpa laughed. "I didn't, but thanks for the notice!"

"W-what?"

"I'm only kidding, Yuugi. I figured it out myself, actually. Not to hard to figure out, especially the way you act around him."

I was quiet. I moved the hands from my mouth. "It's that obvious?"

He laughed loudly. "I'm surprised that Yami hasn't figured it out yet!"

Thank god.

"O-okay, you can leave now, Grandpa."

"So quick to get rid of me, aren't you?"

"No, that's not it!"

He hummed. "If you say so, Yuugi." With that, he left and shut the door.

I sat in the same spot for a while, taking everything in. Yami didn't know of my feelings? As much as I should be dancing around my room because I am so relieved that Yami didn't know yet, I was disappointed. Was Yami that dense as to not know, even after how obvious I am? Or was Yami just playing along with me and pretending not to know, but he really does know? His thoughts are so unpredictable, it was hard to tell for sure. I fell backwards onto the pillow and sighed in frustration. I needed to know! If I don't know, then I'm going to have to deal with Trial and Error for the rest of my life. I don't want that! I want an exact answer! It would be so much easier to tell him my feelings, but... the truth is, I'm afraid. I'm afraid of the probability he might not even like me back. There were only two answers: Accept or reject. It's a 50/50 chance, but those numbers aren't good enough for me! I want a one hundred percent possibility he will love me back. Not even a nintey-nine percent chance is good enough; there would still be that one percent left. Nothing other than one hundred. That's it.

I don't know when, but I fell asleep sometime when I was debating when I'd tell Yami I was in love with him. I wanted more than anything to let him know how I feel. Who knows, maybe that's what Yami wants too. Maybe he already know I love him, but he wants me to admit it myself. Hell, maybe _Bakura_ is right about what _Yami_ wants to do with me! I can't read minds, I'm not going to know what he's thinking!

Just a little thought to myself, I hope Bakura is right.

When I finally did wake up though, moonlight shone through the window in patterns of light on the ground. The clock shone green numbers that read 2:41 a.m. I was still in the clothes I wore earlier. My cheeks were stained in a soft pink. My eyelids threatened to close on themselves if I did not do something about it. I yawned loudly and pulled myself out of bed. I stumbled down the hallway to look at myself in the mirror, which was all the way down the end of the hall in the bathroom. I flicked the light on upon entering, and I noted several strands of hair randomly thrown about my head. I sighed rather loudly, and regardless of my apperance, I would at least brush my teeth. Then change into some more comfortable clothes, then sleep for three more hours. Yeah. That's what I'll do.

And during those three hours, I plan to lay deeply asleep.

Hopefully, if I'm lucky, I'll dream of Yami.

Unfortunately, morning came too soon. I was fortunate enough to let Yami's face invade my dream cloud, and I was at bliss. Although, my wonderful dream came to an end earlier than expected. The buzzer of my alarm clock startled me so much, I ended up falling out of the bed and onto the floor. And I didn't forget to mention I screamed loud enough to wake up the poor souls across the city. My head hit the floor hard, and I wondered why everything like this must happen to me. I lifted my head and rubbed the back of it, wincing slightly. The door suddenly flew open, revealing a very frightened grandfather.

"Yuugi, what happened?!" he rushed.

I turned to look at him. "The alarm clock went off and scared me half to death."

"I thought you WERE dead!"

I sighed. "No, just annoyed that mornings do this sorta thing to me."

He sighed of relief. "Oh, okay, good. Don't scare me like that again!"

I could say the same to the cruel person that invented alarm clocks. Ruined my perfectly good dream about Yami, damn it.

o-o-o

School came and went like that. In almost every class there was a horribly boring lecture in each of them. And instead of listening like I should have, I pulled out a piece of paper and drew whatever I felt like. Surprisingly, I didn't draw anything about Yami until fourth hour. Most of the page, though, was random stars and swirly lines. Then, I started drawing shapes that looked suspiciously like Yami's eyes. Hell, if I had enough time, I would have drawn a perfect portrait of Yami's whole body! Lunch felt shorter than usual, since Yami had to stay after class later than either of us would have liked.

School ended a few hours later, and I waited at the same corner I always did for Yami. I saw Bakura and Ryou, though no Marik or Yami.

They walked up to me, and instead of greeting them, I asked, "Where are Marik and Yami?"

Bakura answered in a huff, "Stupid bitch Marik decided to stay home today."

Ryou elbowed Bakura. "Don't say that! Oh, and Yami is on his way. He just forgot something in one of his classrooms."

"So let's ditch his sorry ass and hurry home," Bakura finished. Ryou elbowed his again.

I laughed. "Too late to do that now, he's coming." It was true. Yami was already running as fast as he could toward us.

"In that case, let's hurry our asses up," Bakura said.

I glared at Bakura. Ryou sighed and rolled his eyes. "Kura, you are so immature."

Bakura did a fake dramatic gasp. "When the hell did you start calling me 'Kura'?"

"Just now. I got bored, okay?" Ryou giggled. I had to laugh with him.

Yami finally made it to where us three were currently standing, panting heavily. "Sorry... I was... late," he said between breaths.

"It's alright! Come on, let's go," I said, turning around to walk.

"N-no, let me catch me breath first," Yami argured.

Bakura threw a hand in the air. "It's hotter than hell outside! Why would you want to stand out here?!"

"Kura, it's 75 degrees outside. Maybe it's because you're wearing that stupid black jacket," Ryou said, eyeing Bakura.

"Whatever. I'm not taking this off."

After a few more minutes of Ryou and Bakura arguing and Yami catching the breath that slipped from him, we finally were walking back to our own respective houses. Bakura and Ryou were ahead of me and Yami, still arguing over nothing. I giggled, thinking how cute it is when they argue. Yami gave me a strange look.

"What are you laughing about, Yuugi?" he asked me.

"Nothing, I just think it's cute how they can argue about nothing," I replied.

Yami pretended to pout. "And it's not cute when _we_ argue?"

"Well, when we argue, _you_ end up tickling me half to death!"

Yami crossed his arms. "Name _one_ time."

Like he needs reminding. "Well, there was _the first time I went to your house_, and there's also _yesterday_."

"Hey, yesterday wasn't an arguement. You wouldn't let go of me."

"You didn't have to tickle me!"

"How else would I get you off?"

I thought for a minute. "You could have waited until I decided to move myself."

He snorted. "That would have been _never_."

I gasped. "I would too!"

"I'd have to wait three hours."

"Actually, four." I smiled innocently.

"Oh, and you're so cute," Yami mocked, words coated in heavy sarcasm.

"You said I was cute yesterday, didn't you?"

"Yeah, I guess I did." Yami looked down at me and smiled. I smiled back, glad I had won the 'fight'. For now.

With Bakura and Ryou still fighting, we neared my house. I wanted to drop my backpack off here and go to Yami's house again. Walking up the front lawn to my house, Yami followed me. I turned back around.

"I'm just going to drop my backpack off here," I told him.

Yami said in a matter-of-factly voice, "No, you are going to go in your house and I am going to follow you until I feel like going home."

"I thought we were going to _your_ house." I pouted.

"We always go to my house. When was the last time we were at your house?"

"My house is boring though!"

"Mine is more boring!"

I crossed my arms. "But I wanna go to your house."

Yami mocked me and crossed his arms as well. "But we never go to your house."

I took a step toward him, standing on my tip-toes to get even relatively close to his face. "Your house. We are going to _your_ house."

Yami stared at me with a smirk. "No."

"Yes." I tried to make myself even taller, but failing miserably.

"Nope."

"Yes."

"No, we are not."

"Yes, we are too."

Yami sighed loudly. "No. We are not."

I sighed just as loud. "Yes. We are too."

While I was caught off guard, Yami picked me up from the ground and walked toward the front door of my house. I was frantically kicking my legs and trying to get myself back on the ground. I was screaming obscenities at Yami loudly, but he didn't care. Even with my thrashing around, he still got the door open, walking inside. I was still screaming at him to put me down, only getting the same result as the last time. My grandpa was in the kitchen, and his attention quickly diverted to us.

He chuckled. "And what do I have here today?"

Talking over my yelling, he said, "Just a two year old."

"I am not a two year old, now put me down!" I yelled at him.

My grandpa laughed again. "You two look like you're having fun."

Yami rolled his eyes. "If you say so."

I didn't yell as loud, but I was still complaining. "Yamiiiiii, put me down," I whined.

He put me down, all right. But he dropped me. On the floor. On tile floor. I squealed loudly, then stood up, crossing my arms tightly.

"What did you do that for, Yami?"

Yami shrugged. "You said to put you down."

"I meant put me down _gently_!"

"You didn't say that."

My grandpa chuckled. "He's right, you know, Yuugi."

"See?" Yami added.

"You don't have to agree with him, Grandpa!"

Yami cringed. "Yuugi, your voice can get really high pitched sometimes."

I pouted again. "So?"

"I didn't say anything."

"Did too."

"Did not."

"Did too."

"Did not, Yuugi."

"Did too, Yami."

"You can be so impossible sometimes!"

"_I'm_ impossible? You were the one who wanted to argue with me."

"But you started it," I whined.

Yami sighed loudly. "If you say so, Yuugi."

My grandpa cut in. "There's really not much to do here. If you guys want to go to Yami's today, you can. I don't mind."

I spun around to face Yami. "Ha! Even Grandpa thinks so!"

Yami put his head in one hand. "Yeah, I guess so."

After running back to my room to leave my backpack behind, me and Yami were out the door and heading to his house. I felt accomplished that I had won. I don't know what I won, but I did. Yami, even after such a stupid arguement that we would just laugh about five muntes later, was still smiling brightly. It's good he's such a good sport.

"Oh, Yuugi?" Yami suddenly said slyly.

I looked up at him with a wide smile. "Yeah, Yami?"

He smirked. "You _do_ know that you are going to have to pay dearly for what you did back there, right?"

"What did I do?"

"Start such a pointless arguement."

I scoffed. "If anything, _you_ started it!"

Yami laughed. "No, I think you did."

"Nope, you did." I giggled.

"We are not going to start this arguement again, are we?"

"Even if we did, I'd win!"

"Yeah, we'll see."

"What does _that_ mean?"

"It means I'd win. You only won because of your grandpa."

"A win is a win."

"You should speak for yourself."

I looked at him. "I did."

Yami hummed. "Okay, if you say so."

"I do say so."

"Hmm."

We reached Yami's house, and we were only in the front lawn by the time Yami poked both of my sides from behind. I squeaked, then turned around to get him back. He ran as fast as he could, and I tried to catch up to him. And it's not that hard, considering he never left the yard, but me and my short legs can't run that fast. It turned out that Yami stopped, stepped out of the way when I got close enough to reach him, then latched his arms around my stomach and tackled me to the ground. I tried to break myself free and attack him, but Yami was already tickling me non-stop. I attempted kicking him while he was still behind me, but it didn't seem that Yami cared much as long as he was tickling me. I gave up trying to get him to cease and just decided to let him have the advantage of tickling me.

I heard a voice that sounded like Marik. "Take his top off!"

Then I heard Bakura. "Yeah, touch him hard!"

I blushed heavily. WAY heavily. Yami stopped tickling me long enough to stand up and attack the other two manicas. "Both of you shut the hell up!" Yami yelled, lifting both up from the ground by their shirts.

"O-okay, okay, just let me go and we'll be on our way," Marik said.

Malik and Ryou had come outside by this time to see Yami about to tear Marik and Bakura's heads off and me sitting on the grass, my face plastered with a dark scarlet. Malik stood and watched the "free show" while Ryou walked over to me to ask what happened.

"...I'd rather not talk about it," I replied, still blushing.

"Aww, come on, what happened."

"Yami was tickling me-"

"Again?" Ryou sighed. "Anyway, go on."

"-and Marik and Bakura came outside and stuff that made me blush a lot. And Yami wants to rip their heads off their shoulders."

"Same comments as usual?"

"Same comments as usual."

Now if only Yami took Marik's comment into consideration. Then I'd _really_ have something to tell Ryou.

But Bakura's comment...

Never mind. Too disturbing to even comment about.

After Marik and Bakura had a small percent of the horrible scared out of them, and Ryou and Malik went back to the neighboring house, Yami and I finally went into his house.

Yami looked at me and laughed. I glared at him.

"What's so funny?" I asked.

Yami reached out to touch my head. "You have a piece of grass in your hair." He plucked the blade out and showed me.

"That's your fault."

He laughed. "Yeah, I guess it is."

I finally got over my stubbornness and smiled as well. Even if Yami could be so cruel and mean to me sometimes, it's all in good fun. He'd never hurt me. And if he did hurt me, he'd only come back later to apologize and make up for it.

And that was one of his better qualities.

Possibly, his only bad quality is not at least consulting me before tackling me to the ground and tickling me until my cheeks go from red to blue.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Kurisuten: Aaaand that's the end on chapter 9!

Kishichi: I thought it was cute!

Kurisuten: Yeah, but poor fluff didn't get to shine in the beginning of the chapter.

Kishichi: It's okay! It made up for itself!

Kurisuten: Yeah. Oh, yeah, at the end of every chapter, I'm going to kidnap a character from the story. And today, it's Malik!

Malik: ...why am I here?

Kurisuten: I get bored. And kidnapping people is fun.

Malik: So's brainwashing people.

Kurisuten: And making them my mind slaves-

Malik: Doing my every command-

Kurisuten: -and they can't disobey-

Malik: -or they'll get horrible, unusual punishment-

Kurisuten: -and they'll to be to scared to not obey-

Malik: -and all other slaves will learn from them-

Kurisuten: -and I'd eventually have an entire city of mind slaves!

Malik: New best friend?

Kurisuten: New best friend! -hug-

Kishichi: U-uhh, please review, and we'll see you back here next chapter! Ja ne!


	10. Sleepers RYOU'S CHAPTER

Kurisuten: Because I love you all SO SO SO much, I made a SPECIAL chapter!

Kishichi: SPECIAL?! HOW?!

Kurisuten: This is a chapter, in Ryou's POV, about his horrid- I mean, WONDERFUL life in the mornings with Bakura.

Kishichi: Ooooooh, no way!

Kurisuten: WAY!

Kishichi: Wait, is this another scam to get more reviews, so you feel better about yourself when you write that Yami POV chapter?

Kurisuten: Not really actually. I got bored.

Kishichi: Oh, okay.

Kurisuten: Laaaazy. **Me no own YuGiOh. Or song titles. Or characters. Or stupid unoriginal ideas.**

Kishichi: Chapter start, then!

(Note: Incase you didn't read anything from above, this is a random, no essential plot related chapter in **Ryou's Point of View.** Reminder, this has NO REAL PLOT WHATSOEVER. Now you may read.)

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

I wonder what time I went to bed last night. It must have been late, because I don't ever remember being this tired and unwilling to wake up. Usually, I like to wake up in the morning. I don't like school, but getting up is no problem for me. What happened last night? It's hard to remember. Oh, wait, now I remember. Bakura just _had_ to make me stay up and watch some movie with him. I think it was called... Orphan? Yeah, that's what we watched. I didn't even know it was out on DVD. Actually, no, wait, he actually got it for free at the movie premere night. He was chosen out of a random draw to get it. Shocking he didn't steal it or get the pirated version, huh?

I opened my eyes slightly, and everything was way too blurry to comprehend objects around the room. A bright light filled my eyes, and I regretted opening my eyes. Wait, bright light? The sun didn't rise this early. Oh, it was the bedroom light. I rubbed my eyes and opened them a little more. I sat up only slightly, and I felt something touch my arm. I turned my head to look and saw-

"Oh my god Bakura, what the bloody hell are you doing here?!" I screamed. Bakura stirred in his sleep, and finally opened his eyes to look at me.

"God, Ryou, you didn't have to wake me up," he moaned. I glared darkly at him.

"What the hell are you doing in _my _room, in _my_ bed, under _my_ covers?" I stressed the word 'my' to emphasize what was clearly mine and shouldn't have a sleeping Bakura in any of them!

Bakura turned over onto his stomach and looked at me through one eye. "There was no fucking way I was going in my room. Do you _know_ what those bastards did?"

"You could have slept on the couch!" I really don't care what Marik and Malik could have been doing. Or threatened to do. Or anything. At all.

"Yeah, but it's not as comfy as your bed. And you didn't seem to have a problem with it last night."

I agreed to let him sleep here last night? Is Bakura just saying this so I'd believe him and give up on arguing with him and letting him sleep longer? No way would that happen. "I never let you sleep here!"

"Yeah, you did. You don't remember? I came in here and tried to wake you up to let you know I'd be in here and you didn't really say much. But you said my name like... once, and you moaned something, so I just thought you said something like 'sure, go ahead'."

I-I what?! Oh, now I remember. Wait- that was a dream! A-and... he heard me?! Might as well play along. "O-oh, yeah, I remember."

Bakura hummed, then put the pillow over his head. "Shut off that damn light. It hurts my eyes."

I pulled the pillow off his head. "It is 6:00, and you _will_ get up. You _are_ going to school."

Bakura moaned. "It's Saturday. There is no school today."

"No, it's _Friday_. Since you didn't go to school yesterday- AT ALL -you probably wouldn't know what today was. It's _Friday._ Get you ass up and get dressed."

Normally, I wouldn't curse. But, it was six in the morning, I got two hours of sleep, and I was quite irritable.

Bakura groaned loudly, then sat up. "Oh, what the fuck ever."

"And at least put on a shirt," I said to him.

"I will wear whatever the hell I want to, and I will not have you tell me otherwise."

I paused. "You... have pants on, right?"

"Only if you count boxers as pants." How can he say these things with a straight face?!

My face darkened red. I was sleeping with a half naked psycopath? He could at least warn me before not wearing hardly anything! I mean, at this rate, I'll turn out like Yuugi, who blushes at _everything_! Well, at least Yami doesn't sleep in the same bed as him with hardly anything on without even telling him while he was concious!

"Kuraaa, that's weird to know that you slept with me with hardly anything!" I whined at him.

"Oh, suck it up," was his reply. "And why do you have to use that annoying-ass nickname for me?"

I crossed my arms. "That's not the point, Bakura. Get out of bed. Now."

Bakura, clearly annoyed, groaned loudly and dragged himself out of bed. When I saw him, he wasn't kidding; he really _was_ in just some boxers. I covered my eyes, as well as the blush that had formed.

"And put some clothes on!"

"As if it matters."

"Not kidding. Go. Now." I pointed out of my room toward his own, since none of his clothes are obviously in here.

"But Marik and Malik are in therrre," Bakura whined pathetically.

"As if it matters," I mocked. "Why did they go in your room anyway?"

Bakura sighed rather loudly. "Some people got a bit too pissed off because I don't keep that other room properly heated regularly."

"So they couldn't turn the heater up?"

"Apparently not."

I sighed. "Just... go find something to put on. I don't want to have to look at you half naked all morning."

Bakura scoffed. "You and that Yuugi-kid both can't own up to your own feelings."

"W-what the bloody hell are you talking about?!" I snapped.

"Well, it's simple. Yuugi can't figure out why the hell he can't just completely screw Yami rather than waiting for him to, and you can't realize the fact that you'd rather have me in the same bed with you, both of us barely clothed if at all, AND you like my body without a shirt on." Bakura smirked rather victoriously. I scowlled at him.

"You and Marik both have sick minds!"

"But I got the general idea right, didn't I?"

"M-maybe for Yuugi, but not me! W-why would I want _that_ with _you_?!"

Bakura stared at me with a 'Oh come on, we both know I'm right' look. "Really now?"

"Yes, really!"

"Whatever you say."

I smacked my forehead. "Just... go get some clothes on. I have to get dressed for school, too."

And with that, Bakura didn't argue anymore, and he was out the door within seconds.

Later on, I was trying to find something to eat for breakfast, because I didn't really eat anything last night. Except for way over-cooked popcorn. And I don't even like popcorn to begin with. Finally settling on a plain piece of bread, I sat on the couch in the living room, bored and waiting for Bakura so I could hurry up and get school over with for the day. Even the smart kids that actually pay attention in school get bored of it sometimes. Okay, all of the time. I was bored of it everyday of my waking life I had to go to that torture-building.

I put the last piece left of the bread in my mouth, some of it sticking out of my mouth. Bakura rounded the corner from the hallway, saw me, and made his way over to me, crossing his arms. He smirked.

"You are eating bread. The bread is sticking out of your mouth. I am hungry and too lazy to go get some bread myself. I am going to steal that little piece of bread, and you will not care," he explained. I gave him a strange look, and without any consolation whatsoever, he bent down to where he was at my level, leaned forward, and took whatever bread was not fully in my mouth. Blushing, I pushed him away from me. I quickly swallowed what bread was left, and glared angrily at Bakura, who was now standing up again, hands on hips.

"What. The hell. Did you just do," I seethed.

Bakura shrugged, still chewing the piece of bread he stole from me. "I told you I was going to steal it."

"You didn't say with your mouth!" I exclaimed.

"You didn't ask how I was going to steal it. And plus, it sounded like fun."

"How did it sound like fun?!"

"Because teasing you is the funniest thing ever."

"I thought teasing Yami and Yuugi was."

Bakura crossed his arms. "Yeah, but Yami actually tries to murder me after a while. You don't really do much but sit and blush."

I copied Bakura's movements. "I get pissed off after a while, you know."

"You don't act like it."

"Because I don't want to."

"Because you _like_ it when I tease you."

"Wha- I do not!"

Bakura brought his face to the same level as before, smirking devilishly. "I highly doubt that."

I don't blush as deeply as poor Yuugi does, but my face can get pretty red, and right now it _was_ probably the darkest shade of red my face could handle. "W-why do you say that?"

Bakura laughed a bit to himself. "If you really didn't like my teasing, you probably would have stopped me by now. Which, you haven't."

"W-well... I don't like how your teasing me right now," I commented.

"Oh, trust me, Ryou. This has gone past teasing now." I swear, the entire room got darker as he said this.

"C-come on, don't we have to go to school now?"

Bakura clicked his tounge. "School can wait."

I squeezed my eyes shut. I felt Bakura's forehead hit mine, then the tip of his nose pressed against my nose. Then, in a low voice, Bakura said-

"Nice dream you had last night."

I opened one eye and saw Bakura staring right into it.

"I-I what?"

"Sleep-talking tells a lot about what a person could possible be dreaming about. I'm flattered you dreamt of me."

Do I really sleep talk? Did Bakura really hear that? Thanks, life. You're great. Really.

We arrived at school after a silent walk, and I was greeted by Yuugi upon entering our first hour class.

"Hi, Ryou! How are you?" he asked innocently.

I forced a sheepish smile. "I'd rather not talk about that."

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

**PLEASE READ. LIKE, NOW.**

Kurisuten: I just had this funny idea yesterday morning, and I had to write it! I was afraid I'd forget if I did it later! So, the real chapter is in the works right now. But I just love Tendershipping fluff! It's so adorable!

Kishichi: It is!

Kurisuten: And just a fair warning, I will most likely want to do this kind of thing again. If you guys want, I'll do two more of these kind of chapters, not counting the Yami chapter I'll make if I get my reviews.

Kishichi: Please like this chapter. These sort of things are what her randomly giggle in the middle of class.

Kurisuten: Yeah, when I get bored, I will either start writing "Yuugi Mutou plus Yami Atemu equals Love" or something related to that COMPLETELY IN JAPANESE, start drawing chibi drawings of Yami and Yuugi, or think of these ideas over and over in my head.

Kishichi: And it's usually thinking of the amazing ideas in this story while writing in Japanese because she's bored.

Kurisuten: But yes, please think this was a good idea, so I can do this again! I put this story before my homework when I get home!

Kishichi: She really does! She has a lot of fun with the different ways she can pull the story.

Kurisuten: Hai, hai! Dai suki, minna-san!

Kishichi: ....She said she likes all of you lovely people.

Kurisuten: I just like the Japanese language, is all. XD Anyway, thank you much for reading, and please review, even if it's just, "Good chapter" or "Good story", or even "Update soon"! I like all reviews! They keep me modivated to write! But don't send me hate reviews. Because those discourage me and you hurt the other readers that actually like this story and want me to keep writing it!

Kishichi: Yes, please everyone, review! Anything besides hate reviews are acceptable! We really don't mind!

Kurisuten: And I don't mind if you review every single chapter right right now, because you are super eager to read a Yami POV chapter! Don't think that I'll get annoyed with all of these reviews by the same person over and over. I love reviews! They're really fun to read! And with that, I go to write the "real" chapter 10 now! Ja ne!


	11. Those Nights

Kurisuten: This chapter, I actually did take some time on. The whole reason I can get chapters up in like, a day, was because I completely skipped my homework. Or did it really quick later. So how fast I type a chapter depends on if I have a lot of homework today.

Kishichi: Yeah, this chapter was started to be typed after she did her Japanese homework.

Kurisuten: Which I did most of it in class today. But, I still have to write a final draft for an essay in English (Which is recopying words on another piece of paper anyway) and I have to write a few notes on a notecard for my Biology test tomorrow. And I don't care about the Geometry homework. It's due Thursday anyway.

Kishichi: Do it now and you won't have to tomorrow.

Kurisuten: Do it now and I can't type this up!

Kishichi: ...Whatever you say.

Kurisuten: But yeah, all chapters depends on if I have homework or not. You people better hope I never have homework again. Then I'd have like, three chapters up in two days. XD

Kishichi: Anyway, disclaimer! **Kurisuten Yamichi Ichikish owns nothing of the following: YuGiOh, Characters, Unoriginal ideas, and Song titles used for chapter titles.**

Kurisuten: And I deem myself done with the intro. Chapter start!

(BTW, Yuugi's POV is back. :D

And is there a lime in this chapter? Hmm, there may be one..... Maybe you should read on..... 3)

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

The week went by faster than I thought. Well, in the beginning of the week anyway. The part of the week I spent with Yami all day went by really quickly. After Wednsday, though, the week dragged. With my grandpa having to go completely to another city to visit an ill aunt (And me wanting to stay here to be with Yami), I had the house to myself and I could hang out with Yami all day and not have to worry about anything. But, unfortunately, Yami had gotten a cold, and he didn't want me sick either. Although, I really could care less whether I was or not. But he really didn't want to feel guilty for getting me sick with him.

And yet he doesn't feel guilty for me having horrible cramps in my sides because someone doesn't know when to stop tickling someone.

But thankfully, Friday came around, and Yami was feeling himself again, so the day went by pretty quickly. School started, then lunch, then school ended. That's how the day felt like. Exactly like that.

Yami and I were already walking home from school, since we did not want to have to wait for Psycopath #1, Psycopath #2, and Mr. I-Like-To-Argue-With-Bakura-Because-I-Am-Easily-Amused. And I'm not exaggerating. The air was cooling down since autumn was finally coming around. It felt so much better than a few weeks ago, when the tempurature was still over a hundred. I took a deep breath and sighed. Yami looked over at me.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Yeah, why do you ask?" I smiled.

"Well, you just sighed, and I thought something was wrong, you know?"

I shook my head. "Nope! I'm fine!"

Yami nodded. "That's good to know."

Suddenly, out of nowhere, I felt two arms latch around my neck, and I fell forward towards the ground from unbalence. I made a quick, loud squeak, and my face met the sidewalk. Whoever had tackled me to the ground got off my back.

"Sorry, Yuugi," the person said.

I turned my head to look. "Ryou, what was that for?"

Ryou shrugged. "It looked like fun!"

"I'm short! Compared to me, you're like, a foot taller than me!"

"Nope, only two inches taller than you," he corrected.

I sighed. "Oh, right."

Yami held a hand out to help me stand up. Since I was laying on my freaking stomach, I don't think that would help very much.

"Yami, I strongly don't think that is very helpful," I muttered.

Yami stood with his hands on his hips. "I was only going to help, but okay, you can get up by yourself then!" He was smiling. A lot. Just because he liked to mess with my thoughts.

"I meant if I'm laying down on my stomach, I doubt it'll be easy to stand up the way you were trying to help."

"Hmm, I guess your right."

Oh, you knew.

"So, are you going to let me lay here?" I asked with fake impatience.

"Well, how am I going to help you stand up?"

"Why don't you think of something?"

Yami stared at me, sometimes looking around. I raised an eyebrow.

"What are you doing?"

"Thinking."

No you're not.

"You are?" I asked.

"I am."

"Think of anything yet?"

"Nope."

Yes you have.

"How long am I supposed to lay here?"

"I haven't thought of anything yet."

Yeah, right.

Ryou, who was still sitting next to me, said, "How about Yuugi sits upright, _then_ Yami can help him up!" It was more of a thought to himself outloud, but Yami took the advice.

"Yes, Yuugi, why don't you?"

I sighed loudly. "You thought of that way before."

"No I didn't."

"Yes you did."

"Whatever you say, Yuugi."

I pushed myself from the pavement and sat with my knees up to my chest. I held a hand toward Yami, asking for him to help me with my actions. Yami took my hand and pulled me up from the sidewalk. I dusted the dirt from my legs and chest off. I shook my head in case any leaves had gotten in my hair. I smiled at Yami gratefully.

"Thank you Yami."

Yami nodded. "You're welcome, Yuugi."

Ryou laughed and stood himself up. He turned around, just to turn back to us. "Where did Marik and Bakura go?" he asked. We both shrugged. He sighed. "Alright, I'll walk with you guys then, if you don't mind."

"We don't," I said, shaking my head. I looked up at Yami. "Right, Yami?"

"Nope," he said, shaking his head. Although, he lost his smile, and his eyes seems lost of energy. Was... Was Yami not wanting Ryou to come along with us? Why was that....?

Ryou smiled. "Awesome! You guys are the best!"

"Thanks, Ryou!"

Yami stared ahead of us, not getting into the conversation as much as I would have liked. He really only talked when he was spoken to. But why? Why did Yami seem so lifeless? Actually, why did Yami seem so lifeless after I let Ryou walk with us? No, wait, why did Yami seem lifeless after Ryou aked to walk with us? I wanted to ask him, but I was afraid I'd hurt Ryou's feelings. And there was no way that he'd answer me, anyway.

Sometimes, I'd look at Yami to see what he was looking at, sometimes he'd be looking ahead of us, sometimes looking at the ground, and a few times, I caught him looking at me. And when he was, he'd look away and stare at the ground. I could be wrong, but I think I saw him blush softly once. I was a bit worried about him, truthfully. Maybe he was still a little bit sick. But... that didn't explain anything with the way he was acting. I didn't know what he was thinking, and I didn't know why he was acting like he was. I wish I did, though. Maybe I'd be able to help him.

Ryou was talking about something, and I know I should be listening to him, but my mind was so hooked on Yami to even know what he was saying. I think he was telling me about what happened this morning with him and Bakura. Oh well. I looked up at Yami for about the hundredth time. Each time I did, his eyes seemed to get duller and duller. I was starting to get super worried about him. I looked around, and I noticed that we had passed my house. I turned around and looked at them over my shoulder.

"I'm going to drop my backpack off here, if you guys don't mind waiting a little bit," I said.

Ryou stopped, and Yami did too. "Alright, Yuugi, we'll wait here!" Ryou yelled back.

I didn't actually care if I left my backpack at my house or not. What I wanted to accomplish was Yami following me and arguing that he never gets to hang out at my house, and we always go to his. He didn't. He didn't follow me or tell me we should stay here. That's that I wanted. Now I _know_ something is wrong with him.

I ran back outside a good thirty seconds later. But, when I did, one question crossed my mind.

"Uhh, Ryou, why are poking Yami?" I asked, raising one eyebrow.

"He's not saying anything," he replied, continuing to poke Yami in the arm.

I laughed. "He didn't say anything before, he's not going to now!"

"Yeah, but this is fun anyway!"

I sighed, smiled, and joined in on poking Yami in the arm until he said something.

"Hey, Yami," Ryou said.

I copied him. "Hey, Yami."

"Hey, Yami."

"Hey, Yami."

"Yami."

"Yami."

"Yami-kun."

"Yami-kun."

"Yaaaamiiii."

"Yaaamiii."

"Hey, Yami."

"Hey, Ya-"

I didn't get to finish my sentence. Yami had started poking me back, except not my arm. No, he was poking my sides. Over and over. I giggled and fell into the front lawn. He just followed me and kept poking me repeatedly.

"Hey, Yuugi. Hey, Yuugi," Yami repeated while poking me.

"O-Okay, I get it! I-it's annoy- eek! -annoying! You c-can stop now!" I pleaded through my laughter.

I half expected Bakura or Marik to show up and make more dirty comments about this. Nothing yet, though. I wish they did, though, because they'd at least get Yami to quit it. The one time you need the people that annoy the hell out of you, they don't show up. I think they enjoy torturing me.

Ryou had an idea; he thought he'd copy Yami and poke the living hell out of me. So, now I have two people poking me, and I'm completely defencless to stop them. Yami had given up on poking and was just tickling me now, but Ryou seemed to have fun poking me. I'll admit, this was funny in a way. Even though I'm in horrible pain afterward, it's fun. Plus, that's how me and Yami fight; we have a tickle-to-the-death match. Just without the death part. After a while, Ryou gave up and just watched Yami and me. He always thinks this sort of thing was funny, and I agreed with him. Well, at least, until the psycopaths show up.

And, speak of the devil (well, devils in this case), and he will show up. I saw Marik and Bakura walking up behind Yami, and I knew they weren't here to have a tea party.

"Y-Yami, b-behind y-y-you," I tried to tell him.

"I'm not falling for it, Yuugi," Yami replied.

"N-no, I-I'm not kiddi-"

I, once again, did not get to finish my statement. Instead of Marik and Bakura making their perverted comments as usual, they've taken it to a whole brand new shiny level. Note the heavy sarcasm. The palm of Bakura's hand connected with Yami's back, and Yami was pushed forward toward me. Before I had any chance to do or say anything, I had a Yami on me. This was _almost_ like that first time Yami had fallen on me, except for one big difference. A _huge_ difference. And most of all, an _embarrassing_ difference.

Even if it may have been for a short time, it was the longest three seconds of my life. For three long seconds, three horribly embarrassing seconds, Yami's lips had connected with mine. For three seconds. I was technecally kissing Yami for three seconds.

I was one of those people that would rather wait until I've found that one person to have a first kiss, but this... really didn't count. This did not count at all. Just a reminder, Bakura had pushed Yami on me, so it was a complete accident that this happened. This was not, I repeat, _not_ intentional. Completely accidental! It was Bakura's fault. _Not _purposely. Absolutely not. No way.

And yet, it probably was anyway.

Marik and Bakura cackled darkly. Even Ryou was giggling a bit. Yami quickly realized what happened and pulled away as fast as he could. I couldn't move. I was paralyzed until someone moved me. That three seconds left me think about that moment for three minutes.

"God, Yami, I was trying to push you on top of Yuugi for the hell of it, and you _kiss_ him!" Bakura exclaimed.

"That's golden! I wish I had a freaking camera!" Marik thought aloud.

Ryou quit giggling enough to speak clearly. "Kura, that was a bit mean. You know you did that on purpose."

"Yeah, _Kura_," Yami sneered.

Bakura scowled at him and continued to head in the direction he was walking in before. Marik smirked once more before following him.

I still never moved. I refused to. Maybe if I lay here enough, I'll finally wake up. Yeah, this isn't real. No way. Not real. Nope. Absolutely not real-

"Hey, Yuugi, you awake in there?" Ryou tapped my head with his finger. I still didn't move. He looked down at me. Yami looked down at me as well.

"Yuugi, awake?" Yami asked, shaking my arm slightly.

I didn't want to move.

"Yuugi..."

I wanted to kiss him again.

"Yuugi."

At least for three more seconds.

"Hey, Yuugi."

Even one second would be good enough.

"Yuugi?"

Except I wanted the next time not to be an accident.

"Yuugi."

I wanted a chance at remembering the feel of those lips.

"Yuugi!"

One chance to do that again.

"You think he's alive?"

"Yeah, you's think he'd blush a bit more than this."

"Maybe he's just in shock."

"Let's go with that."

I didn't even notice that Ryou and Yami were still here. I was lost in my own thoughts to even notice them.

"Actually, his breathing is a bit slow..."

"Maybe he _is_ dead."

"Only one way to find out."

"What would that be, Yami?"

I wish Ryou didn't ask that.

Suddenly, I felt the fabric of the bottom of my shirt brush against my skin, being pushed up by a soft hand. I recognized the skin texture immediately. The hem of the shirt stopped just below my ribcage, and I felt a cool breeze breathe across my now bare midrift. Yami's hand skimmed my stomach from the right to the left side. I tried not to move. My heart pounded loudly. I heard Ryou giggle. A finger traced every outline and curve on my stomach. I didn't want to stay still, but I tried to. As much as I'd like to sit up and scream, 'Okay, you can freaking quit it now!', I... _liked_ this. The hand moved to my right hip, and I tried not to move. And I wish I did. Right then, Yami had completely took advantage of the situation and started to tickle me again.

I shot up into a sitting position, trying to defend myself. "Kya! Yami, s-stop it!" I squeeked.

And he did. I'm surprised.

Yami crossed his arms, smirking. "And what do you know, he actually _isn't_ dead!"

"Oh, you knew I was alive."

"Yeah, but it's fun making you blush."

"I'm not even blushing that much, though!"

Ryou couldn't stop his laughing. "Y-yeah, Yuugi, you are."

Yami nodded.

"A-am I really?" I was blushing?! I didn't even notice!

"Oh, it's okay, Yuugi. I think you look fine when you blush," Yami replied.

"You're only saying that because you're the one that _causes_ me to blush!"

Yami had fake look of surprise. "Why Yuugi, I didn't know that I meant that much to you!"

Ryou was laughing at the irony of the situation; Yami was making jokes about me liking him, and even though he may or may not know it, I actually do like him. It's way too ironic if you ask me.

I crossed my arms and pouted. "Well, now thanks to you, my skin's going to be irritated from the grass."

"Your fault, not mine."

I sighed. Then, suddenly, I had the best idea. "Yami, Yami, Yami!" I repeated, shaking Yami's arm.

Yami laughed. "What, what, what?"

"I should totally sleep over at your house! I mean, it _is_ a weekend and stuff!" I suggested in excitement. "And plus, my grandpa wouldn't mind. He doesn't come back until late tomorrow night anyway."

He thought for a minute. "Sure, why not. I don't see a problem. And with Malik around, Marik won't be crashing at my place for a while."

Ryou cut in. "And Bakura's started sleeping in my room for who-knows-what reason."

"Perfect!" I exclaimed.

"Alright, sure," Yami agreed, nodding. I smiled.

"Awesome!"

And it really was.

After getting a few things from my house (pajamas and generic stuff like that), the three of us started walking back to our respective houses. We were all talking about nothing particular, and I still caught myself gazing at Yami every now and again. I can never help myself, I had to. Yami is... addicting. That was one of many words that could possibly describe him. He was perfect, he really was in my eyes. Everything about him was perfect; his eyes, his face, his touch, his scent, his body, everything! But, the most perfect feature he had was his personality. He was caring when I needed caring for, he made me laugh when I didn't want to smile, he was conforting when I needed him, and he doesn't even know how much I truly love him.

For some reason, I think it's a bit shocking how long I can rant about Yami. I mean, I know I can talk forever on one topic, but I can talk forever times two about Yami. And yet, something tells me that question will never be answered.

Ryou had said his good-byes and ran towards his house, and Yami and I walked in his own. Lights were on, this time. I kept a close eye on Yami, just in case he was about to turn around and tickle me again. Why does he do that? I'm not a Tickle-Me-Elmo thing. But, hey, I won't complain. I tossed the small backpack at the couch, it hitting the back of it and falling to the floor.

"So," I sighed, "what are we going to do?"

Yami sighed as well. "Hell if I know."

"How do you not know? It was _your_ idea to let me sleep over here."

Yami looked at me with a 'WTF IS YOUR PROBLEM' look. "Yuugi. It was your idea. Not mine."

"What are you talking about? Your idea."

I could tell Yami was losing patience quickly. "Okay, okay, it was my idea, sorry for arguing."

"Um, Yami, it was _my_ idea, not yours," I corrected, smirking widely. Yami sighed loudly. I think it's funny to mess with him.

"Yeah. Okay. Sure, Yuugi."

"So, what are we going to do?"

"Okay, it's still two o' clock. It's boring here. And we probably should have thought of something to do earlier."

Two o' clock?! That's a long time of doing nothing.

I had an idea. "How about we go rent a bunch of movies and watch them all?"

Yami thought for a minute. "That's... not a bad idea, actually."

I beamed. I'm glad he sees things my way.

So, after we 'stole' Marik's car (Yami is not a bad driver. But I can't believe he drives underaged too!), we spent a half an hour getting about seven or eight movies, some we've seen, some we like, and one we didn't like but wanted to watch anyway. Then, because Yami liked the feeling of driving a car, we decided to go get a bunch of liters of soda that we won't even drink half of. But, hey, I'm not going to whine about it. Though, I had one question. Where did Yami get all of this money from?!

I had a feeling that if I asked, he'd probably say that Ryou had something to do with it. And, quite seriously, I don't blame him.

And so, we finally got back an hour and a half later. But, of course, not without Marik finding out about us driving around in _his_ car without consulting him first.

"What the hell, Yami?!" Marik yelled. "Why the hell did you freaking steal my car?!"

"It's not stealing if I brought it back," Yami said back, putting his hands on his hips.

"You could have at least told me!"

"And I didn't."

"You can't even legally drive a car!"

"Neither can Malik, but you let him drive your car all of the time, and I don't recall him ever asking."

Yami did have a point.

"At least he has a fake driver's licence so I won't get in trouble if he gets pulled over!" Marik was getting maybe just a _little_ mad by now. And little was a huge understatement. So was mad.

"Some of us aren't reckless drivers, so we don't need one."

Marik scoffed. "Yeah right!" He turned to me. "Yuugi, Yami's a horrible driver, isn't he?"

I shook my head. "Nope."

He scowled at me. "You're just saying that because _Yami_ was the one effing driving."

I yelled back at him this time. "If Yami was such a horrible driver, then wouldn't I have walked out of this car looking like I almost got murdered?!"

After staring at me from the sudden outburst, Yami looked back at Marik and added, "Yuugi has a point."

"_Yuugi has a point_," Marik mocked.

Without another word, Yami walked out of the driveway and back toward his own house. I followed him, hauling the bag of soda and movies with me.

Yami waited for me at the front door, opening the door for me. After I walked inside, Yami followed me and slammed the door behind him.

"I hate him," he seethed through his teeth. I looked at him from the kitchen, which where I set the bag on the floor.

"'Hate'?" I repeated.

Yami nodded. "Yeah. Him and Bakura both."

"Hate who? Marik?"

"Yes. I hate Marik so much."

I walked back toward him. "You don't _hate_ him-"

He interrupted. "Yes. I hate him. I've had to deal with him my entire life. And I'm sick of it."

Usually, people say that you can never hate a person. They say it's impossible. Though, you can dislike a person. I've believed this. Until five seconds ago when Yami said this, I believed that you can't hate people. After he said his statement, I couldn't blame him. Marik was a horrible person to everyone, and I can see why he would hate him. Now, whoever says you can't hate a person, I will stare at them like they do not know what they're talking about. Because they don't.

Slowly, I nodded. "I understand."

"You do? Do you really?"

I looked Yami in his eyes. "Yes, Yami. I really do."

Yami smiled. "That's good." There was a pause. "I say we should start watching those movies now."

"Yeah, I agree."

And so, for four and a half hours, we were able to watch as many movies as we could without become overly bored with it. It was somewhere around nine o' clock before the television was shut off and we were sitting on the floor of the living room trying to think of something else to do. And, let me just say, we must be horribly boring people to not be able to think of what to do.

I fell backwards onto my back and stared at the ceiling, sighing heavily. "I'm kinda hungry."

"Yeah, me too," Yami replied.

"What should we eat then?"

"I can't cook, and there's nothing in this house we can eat."

I thought for a minute. "Okay, how about we order a pizza?"

"Nah, I need to save my money, you know. And there are no good pizza places that deliver."

"Oh."

"Yeah, I know."

Silence again.

"Why don't we ask Ryou if there's anything to eat at his house?"

"Whatever there is to eat at Ryou's house is being devoured by Bakura at this moment."

"So you predict the future?"

"Nope, I just know Bakura."

Silence.

"Maybe we should just ask Ryou if there's anything to eat at his house."

Yami sighed. "Yeah, worth a try, I guess."

The two of us stood up from the floor, walking to the front door, and opened it. I took the first step outside. I screeched and went back inside, holding my arms and trying to warm them again. It was freezing cold outside!

Yami gave me a weird look. "Um, Yuugi, what's wrong?"

"I-It's f-freezing out th-there!" I studdered. Yami thought for a second, then took a step outside himself. Three seconds later, he was back inside.

"Y-yeah, you're right. It's freezing."

"T-told you."

Yami shut the door. "How can it get so cold?! I mean, it's only the second day of October!"

"On Tuesday, the daytime tempurature was ninty-something, then the next day, it was 73. And it's not surprising that it's about fifty degrees out there."

"Fifty?!" Yami exclaimed. "Are you kidding me?"

"Just wait until it'll be fifty something during the day."

We both shivered at the thought.

I looked up at Yami. "Is it just me, or is it suddenly really cold in here?"

"It's suddenly really cold in here."

Glad to know I'm not alone.

"So, are you going to turn the heat up?"

"No."

"Why not?" I whined.

"Because it'll make the power bill really high. And I don't have much money left."

I pouted. "Okay, fine, how am I going to stay warm then?"

"It's called go get a blanket and use that." Is Yami not cold?!

"It would help if I had one. And aren't you cold, too?!"

Yami took in a deep breath. "Yeah. I'm cold."

Well, then act like it. You're confusing me.

Yami finally went to go get a blanket so I wouldn't freeze. Him, though, I think he'll live. No matter how much I liked him, no way was I sharing. Because even me can keep things for myself and share them with no one. And I'm not exaggerating when I say 'no one'. He came back and handed me a folded navy blue blanket. Unfolding it, I wrapped it around my shoulders.

"What, you're not going to share?" Yami laughed. I stuck my tounge out at him.

"Nope," I replied.

Yami sighed quietly. "Of course not."

I yawned, putting a hand over my mouth.

"You tired, Yuugi?" Yami asked. I shook my head, still yawning. Yami look skeptical. "No, I think you're tired."

I shook my head. "Nu-uh, I'm not tired, I'm serious." I yawned again.

Yami crossed his arms. "You seem pretty tired to me."

"I'm not!" I corssed my arms from under the blanket draped around my shoulders. I stared at Yami for a while, then yawned a third time.

"Yuugi. You're tired."

"No, Yami, I'm not."

"I'm not stupid."

"I'm not tired."

Yami sighed. "Come on, Yuugi, we both know you're tired. Give up already."

I whined, "But I'm really not tired."

"Yuugi."

I looked at the floor, then back up at Yami. I was about to deny being tired, but I yawned for the upteenth time. "Okay, maybe I'm a little bit tired."

"A little bit?"

"Okay, a lot tired."

Yami looked satisfied. "I knew it."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever."

"You know I was right, Yuugi."

"Whatever, Yami."

"Say I was right."

"What?"

"Say I was right!"

Not wanting to argue, I agreed with him. "You were right that I was tired, and I knew you were right the whole time."

Yami laughed a little. "Yuugi, I was kidding."

Of course you were.

Not much longer later, Yami and I decided to sleep on the floor (The floor is more comfortable! I'm not kidding!). After pushing the couch and table against the wall, The visible carpet soon became covered with several different colored blankets and bedsheets. Pretty much every blanket in the entire house was now placed neatly on the floor. Satisfied with the result, we picked a spot to sleep for the night. After much argument, I came up with the idea to let me have half of the floor, he gets the other. We both agreed and dropped a pillow on our respective side. I quickly went to change into pajamas, then was back in the living room, sitting on the floor holding the pillow tightly. Yami, too, was laying on the floor, staring at the ceiling. The light was still on, and the house was still a bit cold.

I asked Yami, "So, why is there no window in the living room?"

"There is. It's behind those curtains over there," Yami answered, pointing to the same wall the door was on.

"I don't see it."

"I covered the window."

"How come?"

Yami shrugged. "I'm not sure."

"If you had the window uncovered, then you wouldn't have to use the power as much during the day."

"How so?"

"Well, I mean, you don't really use the T.V. as much, and if you had the window open, you wouldn't have to turn the power on to light the house, you know?"

Yami didn't move. He continued his stare at the ceiling. "You have a good point."

"So you should uncover it!" I said, smiling.

"Yeah, I guess I should," he finally said, standing up and walking to the window. I watched him as he slid the curtains out of the way and pulled the small screen off the glass. Whatever had been covering the window was gone in a second, and within a few more seconds, it was in the trash. Yami layed back down to stare at the ceiling again.

"Thank you, Yami," I said in a sing-song tone of voice.

Yami looked over at me. "For what?"

"Uncovering the window! I like looking out of the window at night."

He looked at me as I smiled brightly. Finally, he smiled as well. "You're welcome."

No more than five minutes later, the lights had been shut off (along with the power), and I had crawled under three or four blankets to keep myself warm. Yami, on the other hand, was still laying in the same place he had been before, no blankets or anything, staring at the ceiling. Instead of asking him anything, I turned my back to him and tried to sleep.

But, there was a problem. I couldn't.

I was too busy thinking. Thinking about Yami. Thinking about Yami and the kiss from earlier. The accidental kiss.

Yes, just an accident.

But did I want it to be an accident?

Absolutely not.

Honestly, I wanted to kiss him a second time. But how? I knew that Yami wasn't going to kiss me whether I asked him or not. Well, actually, I don't know that for sure. I think I was just too scared to ask him. No, wait, I know I was too scared to ask him. I didn't know what he would say, so I couldn't ask him. I wanted to kiss him so badly, though. I wanted to be able to memorize the feeling of his lips as well. I had no time to the last time. I pulled my knees closer to my chest. It was an urge, a desire, to kiss Yami again. I needed a chance to, though. I didn't know what chance I had.

Minutes of thinking turned to hours. I never turned once to look at Yami. I hadn't even known how long I had been thinking. Finally, I turned to the other side to look at Yami. He had finally fallen asleep with one blanket over his body. I suddenly had a thought. A thought of what I had been wanting. I had my chance to kiss Yami. And I wanted to take it.

Carefully, I sat up, the covers falling from my upper body. I pushed the remaining blankets off of my legs and slowly inched myself towards Yami. I looked down at him. He seemed to be in a deep sleep, but I couldn't be too sure. I touched him arm and shook him slightly. I whispered his name a few times to see if he would respond, each time louder than the last. I got no response. I suddenly got scared to go through with it. What if he woke up? What if he _is _awake right now? Wait, I told myself that I would do this. I don't want to back out now. Sitting on my heels, one side of me tried to debate myself out of doing this while the other side told me that I had to do this. I could hear my heart beat in my ears. I could feel the blood pulsing in my veins. I could feel my face heat up. I made up my mind. I took a deep breath, and I was going to do it. Very slowly, my body moved on its own and my face was brought to Yami's own face. I stopped myself, an inch away from him. I could hear my concience tell me to get it over with before I gave up. I took its advice.

"Yami," I whispered one last time before I pressed my lips to his. I stayed like this for what seemed like forever. In reality, it was only ten seconds. My face felt hot. I didn't care. In fact, I wanted Yami to wake up now. I wanted him to wake up and know what I had just did. I didn't care if he woke up. I moved myself away from him, just to see if he had been awake. The small amount of moonlight illuminating the room proved to me he wasn't. I sat and stared at him for a little longer before retreating back to my sleeping spot. The second I was settled back under the blankets, I heard a rustling noise behind me.

"Yuugi?" Yami's voice spoke to me softly. It was conforting. I turned my head around to look at him.

"Yeah, Yami?" I asked just as quietly he had.

"You alright? Not cold for you?"

I shook my head slowly. "No, I'm fine."

Yami sat up a little bit, leaning on his elbows. "Can't sleep?"

I might as well answer honestly. "No, I can't."

"Too cold?"

"N-no, it's not that cold. Maybe just a little bit."

"Then why can't you sleep?" he asked.

I sat up as well, staring out of the window. "I guess I'm not used to being here."

"You're here all of the time, though. I don't get it."

"No, I mean that I'm not used to sleeping here. I'm so used to my own house that..." I didn't know how to finish my sentence. But, Yami got the idea of what I meant.

"Yeah, I understand."

I never looked away from my gaze outside. The grass moved slightly with the chilling breeze. The moon lit the yard. I wished I could be out there, under the moonlight, without anything to care about in the world. That would be nice. But I can't get what I want all of the time.

"Hey, Yami. Why did you seem so depressed when we were walking home with Ryou?" I asked him. I wanted to know.

"I don't know. I was just thinking," he repiled. He didn't have to think about his answer. He didn't have to ask me what I meant.

"Are you sure?"

"Positive."

Sighing to myself, I layed back down, back to Yami. "Night, Yami," I said quietly.

"You too, Yuugi."

And I thought that would be the end of that. But, if I really payed attention, I could have swore Yami moved closer to me. And that alone was enough to help me fall asleep.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Kurisuten: Haha! No lime this chapter! X3

Kishichi: There will be one soon though! So don't anyone worry!

Kurisuten: This whole entire chapter was one big writer's block chapter. Half way through, I didn't know what to write! So, I was freaking out because I didn't know how long it was going to take to get it up! I was like, really scared! And I was really stressed out because I had a test in Japanese today, and I didn't know some of the vocabulary, and I had one class period to study them! Me and my friends Holly and Amanda just gave up and wrote the stuff we didn't know on a small piece of paper and put it in our jacket sleeves. So, we cheated a little. -sweatdrop-

Kishichi: But you got it up, and that's good!

Kurisuten: Yes, I know. But, I swear, I'm going to wake up in the middle of the night tonight and hear the sounds of fangirls squeeling all over the world. I just know it.

Kishichi: -sweatdrop-

Kurisuten: Oh, and, at the end of each chapter, I'm going to have a little "debate question"! I give you a yes-or-no question about the chapter, and you guys tell me your thoughts!

Kishichi: Yes, yes! This chapter's question is, **Do you think Yami knew Yuugi kissed him or not?** You guys tell us what you think!

Kurisuten: And if you don't want to answer the question, then review anyway! Anything is fine! Like, "Good chapter", "Good story", or even "Please update" is perfect! I love all reviews! Except those hate reviews. I want to kill them!

Kishichi: ...Did you give up on kidnapping people now?

Kurisuten: I almost got sued after trying to kidnap Yuugi. Yami got really defensive and stuff.

Kishichi: Oh well. Ja ne!

Kurisuten: Bai-bai, minna-san!


	12. My Paper Heart

Kurisuten: YOU GUYS DID IT! YOU DID IT! I HAVE MORE THAN FIFTY REVIEWS NOW! YOU GUYS ARE ALL AWESOME! I LOVE YOU ALL SOOOOOO SOSOSOSOSOSOSOSO MUCH!

Kishichi: -sweatdrop- She's really happy about this recent development.

Kurisuten: Yes I am! So that's why this is chapter is dedicated to the 50th reviewer **Maria124578**!! Thank you so much! -sigh- But this wasn't written as fast as I would have hoped. I started this on Saturday, not Friday. Friday, I was reading a book my bestest guy friend ever, Ray, let me borrow.

Kishichi: Vast Fields of Ordinary?

Kurisuten: -nod nod- Yeah. But the whole time I was reading it, I was imagining the characters as Yuugi and Yami. I recommend you all read it. It's really really good. And sad. Sad but good.

Kishichi: ANYWAY..... and she watched the YuGiOh: Pyramid of Light movie. And had Panda Express.

Kurisuten: No one cares what I had for dinner. But yeah, I like, HAD to watch the YuGiOh movie! There were major Puzzleshipping moments! It was awesome.

Kishichi: But she's here now, and she's typing!

Kurisuten: Yes, yes, good, right? Anyway, I really did get no sleep last night. I swear, I heard the fangirls.

Kishichi: I'm sure you did.

Kurisuten: I did! So, without further ado, enjoy your Puzzleshipping while I grieve about how I might have been caught cheating on a test!

Kishichi: -sweatdrop- **Kurisuten Ichikish does not own YuGiOh, the characters, any references, song titles, or unoriginal ideas.**

Kurisuten: And start the chapter.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

I had only woken up twice after I had fallen asleep last night, but not even five seconds after was I asleep again. I don't remember if I even dreamed of anything after I first fell asleep or after I fell asleep a second time. Though, I remember well of my dream the third time falling asleep. It was short, yes, but it was worth remembering. Anyone guess it was about Yami, yet? Yes, it was about Yami. More specifically, me and Yami. Even more specifically, me kissing Yami and he was kissing me back. This was all the after-effect of the daring desicion I had made last night. It was worth it. I feel a lot better now. I finally got my chance to memorize the way his lips felt on mine. Now, all I have left is what it would feel like if he was kissing me back....

I knew it was morning, and I knew I was awake. Though, I didn't open my eyes. I kept them shut as long as I could, trying to go back to my sleep. I was warm, and I wasn't about to lose that. I also did not want to see how cold it was in the house at the moment. I wanted to continue to lay there, eyes shut, actually warm for once. But... something seemed different about the warmth from last night. There was something recognizable about it. I tried to figure out why it seemed so familiar to me, but my mind was too tired to work. I could also tell I wasn't sleeping on the same side as the night before, but I don't see how that was relavant to any of this. But somehow, something inside me was telling me it was. And I couldn't figure out either of the two.

Light flooded my eyes as they slowly opened. My vision was blurred, everything around me turning into a distant fuzz. A small, tired moan escaped my lips. I opened my eyes a little more, getting a real look at where I was. My body started to unnumb itself, and I felt an arm laying across my shoulder blade. My hands were in loose fists next to my chest, and the sides of them were against something else. Every few seconds, there was a small breath of air that hit the top of my head. When I could see my surroundings, I didn't see Yami a couple meters away from me, passed out on the floor; I saw the black fabric of the shirt Yami had worn to bed last night and small areas of tanned skin that seemed to remind me of the form of neck and shoulders. My breathing stopped. My heart sped up. I looked up to see the face of Yami, sound asleep, completely unaware of what was going on. I remained still. I wanted to wake Yami up right then, but I couldn't remember how to speak. My breathing came back in shortened gasps. My whole face felt hot. I felt paralyzed.

Finally, Yami yawned and awoke, still not noticing what was going on. My eyes widened when he looked down to see me looking up at him. I could tell he was confused what to think. I knew what I was thinking; let me _really _wake up! This wasn't really happening! Yami inhaled sharply.

"Yuugi," he started. He was trying to think of something to say, I know he was. "Did I keep you warm last night?"

What? What did he mean? Does he not get that he woke up and I was right freaking there holding him?! "U-uhh, wha-what?"

"You don't remember?"

"R-remember what?"

"What you did last night. You don't remember?"

I thought for a minute. Then, it all came back to me in a flash. Yami _was_ awake when I kissed him! What am I going to do now?! This is horrible! I took in a sharp breath of air and was about to ask if he really had been awake when I had kissed him. Then, I stopped myself. What if that wasn't what he was talking about? What if I say that and he really didn't know that I kissed him and I accidently confess the wrong thing at the wrong time? It's best if I continue to act like I don't know what he's talking about.

"W-what? N-no, I don't r-remember," I answered. "C-can you t-tell me w-what y-you mean?"

"Last night-" He knows. "-you woke up-" I knew it. "-and came over to me to wake me up-" He really does know! "-and asked if I'd keep you warm because you were cold."

I blinked. Was that what he was talking about? So he really doesn't know? That's good for me to know. But, I don't remember doing that. Then again, usually I don't remember a lot of things that happen when I wake up in the middle of the night. So maybe I really did. And it _was_ freezing last night.

"O-oh, now I remember..." I said.

"Yup." Yami nodded. "So did I?"

"D-did you what?"

"Keep you warm. Did I?"

I nodded slowly. "Y-yeah. You did."

"That's good. There's one less person dying from frostbite in this house," he laughed. I smiled softly.

Hey, wait, so let me go over everything that just happened. I woke up in the middle of the night, asked Yami to keep me warm because I was cold, and I wake up in the morning and freak out? That doesn't seem to make sense to me right now. Maybe it's because I'm tired? I'll try to understand it later.

Yami removed his arm from around my neck and sat himself up. Yawning, he streched out his arms. He relaxed and layed back down. I blinked, then rolled onto my back and stared at the ceiling, just like Yami was.

"I'm hungry," I yawned.

"I'm tired," Yami replied.

"So go to sleep."

"Then you go eat something."

I sighed. "Why don't we actually get up and do something about it?"

"You can't fix tiredness by getting up."

"Yes you can."

"How?"

"It'll make you not tired."

"No, it'll make me more tired."

I sighed again. "No, it won't, Yami."

"Yeah. It will, Yuugi."

"Then go take a freaking shower and you won't be tired."

"Yes it will!"

"Then what won't make you tired?"

"Sleeping for three more hours."

"But you already slept for almost eleven hours!"

"That's not enough sleep! It's a weekend! I need at least fourteen hours of sleep on weekends."

"Too much sleep can kill you."

"Not if you get seven hours of sleep Sunday through Thursday."

"Then you wouldn't have enough sleep overall on weekdays."

"Yes, but the extra hours I get Friday and Saturday make up for the hours of sleep I don't get enough of."

"Yami, you are being impossible."

"Yuugi, you clearly don't understand my sleeping patterns."

In times like these, I wish arguments like these were easy to win. But, usually, they end in tickle matches. And Yami wins because I have no possible way to fight back. Big surprise?

I shook his arm. "Come on, just get up."

"I don't want to, I'm tired."

"You fell asleep at least half an hour to an hour before me!" At least I hope he did.

"That doesn't mean anything."

"It does too!"

"How does that matter?"

"Umm..." I didn't really think I'd get this far into the argument, so I didn't think of anything to say after this. "Everyone is usually tired when they first wake up."

"Not those peppy happy people that like to get up super early in the morning and sprint ten miles."

"They don't count!" By this point, I was sitting up straight with my fists clenched dramatically, though still keeping my glare towards Yami.

"They're part of everybody, right?"

I pouted. Yami will never let me win, will he? "Fine, sleep all day, I don't care." I crossed my arms tightly.

Yami stared at me before pulling the blanket back over his shoulders and turned on his side, back facing me. "'Kay, night, Yuugi."

I whirled myself around, grabbing the edges of the blanket near Yami's face. I ripped it away from him. "N-no! I wasn't serious!"

He sat upright, took the blanket back, and repeated he earlier actions. This eventually turned into tug-of-war death-match between the two of us, though none of us were truly winning. The blanket was tugged toward me, then toward Yami. Eventually we were in each other's faces, pulling our own way continuously. I felt my fingers slipping until their grip faultered, sending me flying backward with a scream. I reached out and grabbed the end of the blanket again on my way down, trying to pull myself up again before hitting the ground, but the only thing that accomplished was sending Yami after me in the same direction I had been falling. My eyes widened, then my head hit the ground hard. I flinched, taking a sharp breath as Yami fell onto me. Yami looked down at me, a hand next to the left side of my head.

"How is it we always end up like this?" Yami asked me. I didn't have anytime to react. No time to think, breathe, or even blush.

"How?" I repeated. "How do we?"

I'm not sure what I'm supposed to be thinking at this point. I'm trying to stall time as long as possible, just so I could keep Yami in the same position. I really don't know what I'm thinking right now.

Yami laughed quietly to himself. "Maybe this is all your doing."

"Maybe it is. Who knows." My mind was so clouded, I couldn't stop myself from saying the things I was. I don't know why, I really don't. I normally wouldn't do this. I know I wouldn't. So why was I...?

"Are you saying it is, or it isn't?"

"I'm saying find out yourself."

Yami drew his eyebrows together. His hand lifted itself to feel my forehead with the back of it. "Do you have a fever maybe?"

Yes. I guess you could consider my high emotions a side effect of a horrible fever. I mean, that's what it usually feels like in moments like these. But this particular day, it doesn't.

"Do I? Do I have a fever? Am I sick?"

Yami kept his hand on my forehead, studying my body tempurature carefully. "It's hard to tell. If I'm right though, you have a slight fever, actually."

"Yes, I have a fever."

He removed his hand. "Maybe you'd want to go home for today?"

I suddenly felt my entire mind clear itself, and I stopped myself before saying I'd rather stay. Who knows what else I could have said. "Y-yeah. That... might help."

"Yes, it might."

Am I making the right desicion? Should I just stay here anyway? I had no more time to reconsider my desicion. It was over. I just hope I'm not going to regret this later. Though, I must not be hoping enough, because I was already starting to wish I had never said anything.

o-o-o

Once again, I was staring up at my own ceiling, laying on my own bed, surrounded by my own warmth. The last of the sun's rays had sunk below the horizon and left behind smears of orange and blue in the sky. I knew my grandpa would be home soon, and I'd have to go welcome him back. All day today, I've done nothing but stare at the same dot on the ceiling, and it stared back at me. I wondered if it felt anything. I wondered if it ever worried that soon it would disappear from it's place and be no more. Maybe it's grown attached to the ceiling, and it never wanted to leave it. But, soon, that day would come. Because everything you grow attached to will be ripped out from under you eventually. That's that I'm worried about. I'm hoping that is just a saying and isn't true.

I closed my eyes for a few moments. I inhaled the air around me. I reopened my eyes, holding the breath I took in. Maybe if I lay here and never exhale, the world will stop revolving and time will catch up to me until I let my breath go. Because that's all I'm doing in life. I hold my breath, in fear that if I breathe out, everything I want and have will slip away from me. But, there's always that second breath you take after you exhale, retaking in new things and people, but it's never the same air you breathe. It's always different. And that's what I don't want. I've already done that once. It seemed easy to take in new surroundings, but I've grown so attached to everyone here. I don't want to lose any of them. Especially Yami. The day I let him go is the day I die. My lungs were screaming for air, and I exhaled loudly. I continued to breathe at a normal pace. Air is let go so easily. I wish it were easy to let go of everything else as easily as air. How easy life would be then.

I heard the sound of the front door opening. My grandpa was back. I quietly sighed before dragging myself off the bed and down the stairs. I tried to put on the best smile I could when he saw me. He walked over to me and pulled me into a hug.

"Ah, Yuugi, I was gone for so long, I almost forgot what you looked like!" he joked. I had to laugh at that. I don't know how anyone could forget what my rediculous hair looks like.

"Yeah, I missed you too."

"That's good. I was worried you'd forget about me and leave!" He laughed loudly.

"Oh, come on, I wouldn't do that."

"I know, but things happen, you know."

I mentally cringed. Yes, things happen. I hope what I've been trying to get out of my mind doesn't happen at all.

My grandpa's face lit up, and I knew he remembered something. "So, how're things with Yami?"

"W-what? What are you talking about?" I studdered.

"Hang out with him recently while I was gone?"

"O-oh. Yeah, I have. I was just at his house today." I was going to include that I slept over at his house, but it slipped my mind before I could say it.

"Ah, that's good."

I nodded, smiling sheepishly. "Yup."

"Anything else?"

"Nope."

He didn't look impressed, but he let the subject go. "Alrighty, then, I'm just going to put my bag upstairs and then we can eat something," he said.

"I already ate. I'm sorry," I lied. Truthfully, I wasn't hungry. So, why didn't I tell him that?

He laughed. "Ate dinner without me, I assume."

"It was just a sandwich, don't worry."

"M'kay, then. That's fine."

"So, you had a good trip?" I asked, following him up the stairs.

"I guess you could say that. At least your aunt is alright."

I nodded nonchalantly. "That's good." I really did want to care a bit more than I sounded, but it was hard for me. I don't even know why I'm acting like this!

I finally had made it to the top of the stairs, and the walls seemed to rush by as I walked toward my bedroom door. The door swung open, just to be shut once again. I stood with my hand on the door knob, staring down at the ground. I thought hard to try to figure out why I didn't feel like myself. I went over what had happened from Friday to today, all in chronological order. Then, it hit me like a bullet. I was slowly gaining confidence in myself. I stood up to Marik for Yami. I kissed Yami. So, why was I acting so... not me? Then, it hit me again. I only get my self-confidence around Yami. This is all confusing for me. I don't understand where I'm going with Yami anymore. This whole thing is messing my mind up. Actually, no, the kiss I stole from Yami while he was asleep is what's messing my mind up. Maybe if I get some sleep I'll be fine? It's worth a try, I guess.

o-o-o-o-o-o

The board read the date "October 5". The test paper in front of me read "Hour 2". The class around me was silently trying to solve the problems put in front of them. Ryou and I sat in the back of the class, completely finished with the assessment. I needed to tell him something, and I needed to tell him now. I glanced over at the teacher, and he had his back to us staring at a computer screen. I swiftly took out a single sheet of paper and scribbled words onto it.

_Guess what happened Friday night! This is really important!_

Silently, I folded the paper twice and tossed it onto Ryou's desk next to me. He looked over at me in confusion, and I mimed opening the paper. Ryou looked back at the paper before picking it up and unfolding it. He skimmed the words before writing his responce and tossing it back on my desk, not bothering to fold it.

_What? What's so important? What happened?_

I stared at the paper, took a deep breath, and shakily wrote my own responce.

_I kissed Yami._

I glanced at Ryou as he read it. His eyes went wide and he re-read it several times. He flicked his head in my direction, and I just shrugged. He looked back at the paper and wrote feverishly.

_Why didn't you tell me that earlier?! Or better yet, why didn't you tell me yesterday?!_

_Um... I sort of forgot._

_FORGOT? How do you forget something like that? This is amazing news!_

_Amazing? How?_

_I __knew__ you'd kiss Yami someday!_

_But there's a problem!_

_Problem? What's that?_

_Well, Yami was sort of asleep when I kissed him._

_Asleep._

It was a one word responce. It held no question mark. It was a statement, not a question.

_Yes. Yami was asleep._

_You kissed Yami when he was asleep._

Another statement.

_I don't see what's wrong with what I said._

_You are going to tell Yami._

I don't know how long I stared at this sentence. Me? Tell Yami? Tell Yami I kissed him? While he was sleeping?! Ryou must be crazy if he thinks I'm going to do that.

_No, I'm not. I'm not telling him, Ryou._

_You have to! Imagine Yami finding out that you like him! It'll be great!_

_No. It won't. It'll be embarrassing. And I am not telling Yami anything until I find out why I even like him in the first place!_

_OK, so you're not going to tell him?_

_Nope. I'm not._

_Awesome! I'll tell Yami myself!_

_No! You're insane!_

_Come on, it'll be great! I mean, you like Yami, Yami likes you, you two will finally be together!_

_No one said he liked me!_

_Keep telling yourself that._

I considered this. Maybe Yami really did like me. Maybe I'm completely blind to this. Maybe-

I had no time to finish my thought, the sound of the bell rang through the room. I collected my belongings and stood myself up from my chair. I shot Ryou a pleading look, trying to tell him not to tell Yami. His responce was a small smirk and a shrug. I didn't like the look of that. I folded the note and put it in my pocket. I didn't want anyone to read it. Especially Yami.

o-o-o

I stepped into the sunlight and sighed. The warmth was disappearing fast. I'd miss it. I fished through my pocket to make sure the note was still there, and I was relieved to find that it still was. Slowly, I walked over to the same tree I always sat at with Yami during lunchtime, and I found out he was already there. Smiling, I sped up my pace and sat myself down next to him.

"Hey!" I greeted happily. I didn't get an answer. He was staring into the distance, looking at nothing in particular. I drew my eyebrows together. "Yami?" I waved my hand in front of his face. "Yami, you there?" He snapped back to reality and turned to look at me. I smiled at him. "What's wrong, Yami?"

"Nothing. Just thinking." He smiled sheepishly.

"I didn't see you yesterday. Or this morning. What happened?"

"Oh, yesterday. I... didn't feel good. No need to worry about me."

I tilted my head to the side. "Eh? You didn't? Aw, I'm sorry, Yami!"

"No, no, it's not your fault."

"Well, I feel bad that you got sick."

"No need to, Yuugi, I promise."

I nodded. "M'kay, then what about this morning? You didn't come by my house to walk with me, and I didn't see you on the way to school either..."

"Oh, I'm sorry. I overslept and was late to school. I didn't mean to worry you."

"Overslept? When did you go to sleep last night?"

"Around ten thirty, but I couldn't sleep at all."

"Aw, I'm sorry, Yami."

"It's fine, it's fine."

Yami was acting a lot different today. But, why? What wasn't he telling me? Please tell me what's wrong, Yami!

We talked a little bit more, and soon, the bell had rung. We both stood up, said our good-byes, and walked in the opposite direction. Just like I had walking out of the school, I reached into my pocket to see if that note was still there. It was empty. Frowning, I double checked. I still found nothing. Eyes widening, I turned around to look where I was sitting before to see if the note was there. Nothing. My heart sped up. Don't tell me Yami found it. Please don't tell me Yami found it. He didn't find it, there's no way he found it. He didn't find it. Then, Ryou's words flashed through my mind again.

_Keep telling yourself that._

Yami found it. Yami found the note.

If anyone needs me, I'll be crawling in a deep dark hole now.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Kurisuten: Oooh, things are really getting deep between them!

Kishichi: Yes, yes they are!

Kurisuten: I am sorry for how short it is though. It really doesn't have much thought in it. And the thought in this chapter is a bit cloudy, so I'm sorry if you didn't understand it!

Kishichi: Oh, it's fine, I promise.

Kurisuten: -nod nod- Okay, so, this chapter has two questions! One is **How do you really think Yuugi and Yami ended up sleeping next to each other like they were? Is Yami lying to cover up the real reason?** The other is **Do you think Yami found the note? If he did, what do you think his reaction will be when he reads it?** Tell me your thoughts on that!

Kishichi: I kinda hope he did find it.

Kurisuten: You and me both.

Kishichi: By the way, there will be a Yami chapter! You guys all reviewed, and now we have a total of 54 reviews! So, a Yami chapter will be typed up!

Kurisuten: I am still so happy about that!

Kishichi: It's awesome, huh?

Kurisuten: Yeah! Oh, and this is completely off topic, but I had a strange idea to cosplay Malik for Halloween this year. -nod nod-

Kishichi: Sounds fun!

Kurisuten: Yeah! Anyway, review please! Ja ne, minna-san!

Kishichi: See ya, everyone!


	13. All About Us

Kurisuten: I AM SO SORRY THIS CHAPTER IS SO LATE! I've have so much homework this week! I feel extremely guilty! Please don't kill me you guys! I-I tried really REALLY hard to get this done! S-s-so please don't s-stop liking the st-story because I can't u-update as fast as I did before... I love you all s-so much!

Kishichi: O-okay, calm down, Kurisuten. I-I'm s-sure they all forgive you. Please forgive her before she kills me!

Kurisuten: I won't kill you. Yet. So, when I said I was making a Yami POV chapter, I didn't say WHICH chapter it would be.

Kishichi: Right! So we're going to surprise you with which chapter is the Yami POV chapter!

Kurisuten: Sorry to disappoint you all if you were hoping this was the Yami chapter.

Kishichi: But we have a super special awesome idea with what to use that later chapter for. So you'll like that idea a lot better, I promise!

Kurisuten: Anyway, I think it's really amazing how a lot of the readers had the same opinion with the first two questions. The third had a bit more varied answers, but it's all good! But does that mean I'm making things too obvious??

Kishichi: If you were making things too obvious, then they'd be able to guess the ending of the story. And trust me, none of them will guess it. I mean, out of all of the fanfiction we've read, we have not seen the exact idea yet. And you know how many fanfics have the same ending.

Kurisuten: I guess you're right. Ooooh, I wonder if anyone will notice that I gained a sudden larger vocabulary! There's these Reader's Digect magizine things, and there are these pages with words and you guess the definition, and the definitions are on the other side. I've been ripping those out and using them. XD

Kishichi: It's good you're doing things to spice up your writing. Sorry if I sound like your English teacher....

Kurisuten: Oh, it's fine. My English teacher is actually pretty cool! Anyway, disclaimer please.

Kishichi: With pleasure. **Kurisuten Ichikish does not own YuGiOh, its characters, any song titles, or unoriginal ideas. They all belong to their owners.**

Kurisuten: Thank you very much. Without further ado, please enjoy your chapter!

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Immediately after school dismissed, I ran out of the school to look for either Ryou or Yami. Ryou, because I needed to make sure he hdan't told Yami anything yet. Yami, because I need to know that he didn't have the note. The cool air hit my face as students and people flew by me. My vision path darted around the area as my feet pushed me forward through the quickly disspersing croud. My eyes widened when I saw Yami, waiting where he always did across the street, on the same street corner. I ran faster, dispite my mind telling me to stop and catch my breath. I drew nearer and nearer to him with every foot step. All I had to do was cross the street and-

A figure walked in front of me, and I collided with the person. The force sent me flying on the ground. Groaning, I looked up to see who I had ran into. He smirked down at me.

"B-Bakura?" I asked, surprised.

"Nice running into you here. Literally," he sneered. I glared fiercly at him as I stood myself up. "So, Yuugi, Ryou tells me you kissed Yami. And he wasn't awake to know about it."

My face reddened. Why did Ryou have to tell _Bakura_ of all people?! "Y-yeah, what about it?"

Bakura put his hands on his hips. "Well, I'm wondering who'll be the one to tell him, me, you, or Ryou."

I clenched my fists. "No one is going to tell him."

He brought a finger to his bottom lip. "Oh, I see, so he's going to go through his whole life without even knowing who stole his first kiss?"

"N-no, I'll tell him." Under my breath, I added, "Eventually."

"But, you just said that _no one_ was going to tell him. Make up your mind."

"Yeah, no one's going to tell him right now! But I'm going to be the one to tell him!"

Bakura smirked widely. "That's what you think." He spun himself around and started walking across the street towards Yami. My eyes widened, and I grabbed Bakura's arm and tried to pull him back, screaming obcenities as I did so. I was failing miserably, for I was only being dragged myself towards Yami. Though, I was managing to slow him down on his walk toward him. Eventually, Bakura did reach Yami, much to my dismay. And, he was going to tell him. "Hey, Yami, you won't believe what Yuugi did." I realized I wouldn't be able to pull either person away so Bakura would no longer be able to tell Yami what he mustn't know. Instead, I tried to cover Bakura's mouth with my hand so he couldn't say anything to him.

Yami watched this turn of events, confused as to what was going on. "Whatever it is, Yuugi must really not want me to know," he observed.

"Oh, trust me, he doesn't. That's why I'm going to tell you just to piss him off," Bakura replied darkly. I snarled and tried harder to get him to cease talking.

"Are you sure you should be telling me?"

I successfully covered Bakura's mouth, but only for a short time. Bakura pushed me off him for the time being and said, "Trust me, you'll like this. Yuugi-"

His statement was cut short. Ryou had appeared behind him and pinched his arm. "Hey, don't ruin poor Yuugi's life," he said.

I watched in awe. "Hey, weren't you originally going to tell him, Ryou? What happened to that?" I asked sarcastically.

"I was only joking about that, Yuugi!" Ryou giggled. I crossed my arms.

"Of course you were."

Bakura folded his own arms. "Why can't I tell Yami? It would be funny! And he deserves to know at least."

I glared at Bakura. "If I wanted him to know, I would have told him."

"Why don't you want Yami to know?! Do you know how much easier your life would be if you just _told him_?"

I stood on my toes, trying to reach Bakura's level. "Maybe I don't want him to know!"

"Maybe he should know!"

"Maybe you should shut up and let the situation go already!"

"Maybe I would if you would just tell Yami!"

I glared darkly at Bakura. He glared just as darkly. Yami and Ryou watched in confusion and amusement at this arguement. Mostly amusement, but that's besides the point.

"So, uh, as amusing as this is," Yami interrupted, "I really have no clue what's going on, so can someone please explain?"

I flicked my head toward Yami. "No!"

At the same time, Bakura said, "Yes!"

We went back to exchanging death glares. Ryou laughed to himself. Yami sighed and dropped his forehead in his palm. I gave up and dropped back onto my heals. I turned toward Yami and Ryou and said, "Okay, can we just go now?"

Bakura uncrossed his arms. "I still don't see why he can't know."

"Yeah, why can't I know?" Yami asked me.

"Because I said so," was my answer. Yami just shrugged, giving up on the subject all together.

We all started walking towards the direction our houses were placed. Yami was walking ahead of us, I was walking with Ryou, and Bakura was behind all of us. I guess Marik didn't come to school today, not that I'm surprised. I leaned toward Ryou and whispered, "Hey, Ryou, you know that note we were passing, and how I took it with me?"

Ryou whispered back, "Yeah, why?"

I quickly glanced at Yami, then back to Ryou. "I think Yami found it."

Ryou's eyes widened. "He did?!" He completely forgot about keeping his voice quiet, and I quickly gasped and covered Ryou's mouth. I looked at Yami to see he hadn't turned around to look at us, nor did I think he knew what we were talking about.

I whispered harshly, "Shut up, don't let Yami hear you! But, yeah, I think he did."

"What happened?"

I looked at Yami again, making sure I kept my voice as low as I could. "Before lunch, I had the note, then after, I didn't. And Yami was the only person near me during those times."

"So you're saying he found the note and read it?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying."

"Then go ask him if he's seen a note."

I gave Ryou a look. "That'll sound suspicious."

"Just go do it." He tried to push me toward Yami, gradually growing impatient.

Sighing, I walked faster to catch up with Yami. I looked up at him and asked, "Hey, Yami, have you seen a note?"

He glanced at me. "A note? When?"

"At lunch. Did you, uh, happen to see a note?"

Yami thought for a minute. "Nope, haven't seen a note."

"Seriously! Did you see a note? I had a note with me before lunch, then it was gone after."

"Oh, that note!" he exclaimed. My eyes widened in happiness, though still held a glint of fear. "Nope, never seen it before in my life."

I frowned. "I need that note, so can you please tell me seriously if you have it?"

"Why do you need it?"

"It has something that no one can know, so I need it."

"Sorry, I can't help you. I don't have it."

I sighed. "Alright, I'll keep looking then."

"Hope you find it, Yuugi." Yami smiled hopefully.

Yeah, me too.

I stopped and waited for Ryou, then started walking again after he caught up. I whispered, "He says he doesn't have it."

"Yeah, I heard the whole thing." Ryou clicked his tounge. "I bet he does have it and he's trying to hide that fact."

"Me, too."

"Not much we can do though."

I nodded. "Yeah, that's really true."

The walk back was pretty quiet. Yami and Bakura didn't have anyone to talk to, and me and Ryou were silent. There was nothing to be said. Yami might have figured out all I had to say to him. And that's what I don't want right now. I need more time before he knows. Just a little bit more time.

Yami stopped walking. Me and Ryou caught up to him, and I asked him why he had stopped.

He answered, "Aren't you going to leave your backpack here?" He turned to look at me, a small, almost invisible, smile crossed his lips. My cheeks darkened a little.

"A-actually, I was going to go to Ryou's house so he can help me with some of the homework in one of our classes," I replied, trying not to sound stupid. But I think I was overly failing at that.

Jokingly, he said, "Aw, are you going to visit me at all today, then?"

I laughed. "Of course!"

Yes, I did spend most of my time with Yami, whether it be at his house, my house, or someplace else that's not at anyone's house. No, I don't have to spend every hour of my day with him, right? Besides, I needed to hang out with my other friends too. And I sort of need help with some homework anyway.

Yami smiled, and I wanted to melt. It's amazing how something that wouldn't be important to someone else means everything to me. Knowing Yami can still have a smile that makes my heart race is enough for me to live my entire life with no sorrow. I'm sorry, that was stupid. I get carried away when I'm talking about him. I can't help it, though. There is just so much I can talk about. Although, I still don't know even half of the things I can know about him. Heck, I still don't know every reason I have for liking Yami yet! Am I really cut out for being with him, or am I still attached to the paper with the untouched scissors lying next to me? Maybe everything _will_ turn out okay, and I'm just overreacting. That's what I'll hope for.

o-o-o

I held my chin in my hand as I stared out of the window, desperately trying to find the end to the profuse amount of trees. The carpeted floor itched at my elbow, but I ignored it. The curve in my back started to feel slightly cramped, but that was being ignored as well. A pencil layed dead in my other hand, and that same hand was relaxed against an unwritten piece of paper with seemingly impossible problems, a mix of letters and numbers strung together with foreign symbols accompanying them. I could hear Ryou talking to me, but I tuned him out. I was thinking deeply about one subject with a million subtopics branching from it: Yami. What was number one on my mind that I was thinking about? What his reaction could possibly be if he ever did read that note. The many different possible answers haunted my mind. I tried to approach the question logically. Yami seemed like the understanding type, so maybe he wouldn't act like it's the end of the world as we all knew it. But then again, some things he did take a little out of porportion. Those little things, though, were taken too far in a sort of comedic way. So maybe he would take it well...

"Are you listening, Yuugi?" I snapped out of my thoughts and flicked my head around to look at Ryou. I blinked a few times before answering him dully.

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I am." I re-rested my chin in my hand and continued staring out the window.

"Are you sure? You seemed like you weren't..." He trailed off. Ryou knew I wasn't paying attention to him.

"I was, really."

"Then what was I talking about, Yuugi?" Ryou, who was sitting upright and could freely move his arms easily, folded his arms across his chest.

I shrugged my shoulders the best I could. "I don't know, something about parallel lines."

He sighed. "You were the one that asked me for help with this homework. You're supposed to be paying atention."

I closed my eyes for a moment. "I know, I know, Ryou."

"What's bugging you then?" Ryou leaned onto his elbows, head in both hands, still sitting with his legs crossed.

"A lot of things," I said. I never did look at Ryou.

"Like what? At least tell me a little of what you're thinking." I felt like I was talking to the little sister I never had. Or my mom or something. They always want to know what's wrong with you, even if it means annoying the hell out of you to get the answer.

I sighed sadly. "Yami is bugging me."

"Ah, I knew he was somehow involved. Tell me about it." He smiled curiously.

Should I tell him? He usually tells Bakura about these things, and Bakura would tell Yami himself. I need to make sure Bakura would never find out. "Are you going to tell Bakura?"

Ryou shook his head. "Nope. I swear."

"Alright." I inhaled deeply. "I want to know what Yami's reaction would be if he ever found out that I stole a kiss from him." I was able to stop myself from blushing at the sudden thought.

For a second, Ryou didn't say anything. Then, he asked me, "If I tell you something, will you promise not to freak out?"

I diverted my head to look at Ryou. "What do you mean?"

"Yuugi," Ryou said, closing his eyes. "Yami already knows."

My eyes widened. I quickly sat up and pressed the palm of my hands against the floor in front of me. "He does?!" Ryou nodded. "How did he find out?! Did Bakura tell him? Did you tell him? Did he really find the note? Did-"

Ryou cut me off. "Yuugi, be quiet for a minute and let me explain!" Slowly, I nodded. "Alright, What I mean is, I'm sure deep down in that thick skull of his, he knows everything. Deep down, he probably knows you like him and you kissed him. I'm not saying that he _knows it_ knows it, but like... If he really thought about it, he'd realize everything. You following this?"

I looked to the floor. "I... I'm not sure what to think, really."

Ryou reached for my hand and enclosed his hand around mine. "Well, I know what to think. I think you should tell Yami."

My eyes closed themselves. "Ryou..."

"You're right, you should tell him when you want to-"

"No, no, I was going to say... I think you are right."

Ryou smiled. "Good, Yuugi. Go tell him right now."

"But what about the homework-"

"Don't worry about it. The stupid teacher doesn't even check the homework, so you're safe to not do it."

"What if he _does_ check it this time?"

"What's one missing assignment going to do, Yuugi? You have hundred percents with everything other assignment, so only one missing assignment won't kill you," he reasoned. Ryou did have a good point. And I wanted to tell Yami as soon as I could.

I smiled as well. "You're right." I packed my homework into my backpack next to me. Standing up, I threw my backpack over my shoulder. "Okay, wish me luck, Ryou."

He nodded. "I will, Yuugi. See you tomorrow!"

I waved and exited the room. I ignored any sounds that may have escaped the door I had passed (Nothing today!), and I heard no snide remarks from Bakura as I walked past him. I exited the house and made my way to the house next door, the house that belonged to Yami.

I really didn't believe what I was going to do. I was going to tell Yami everything. Well, at least everything about me kissing him in his sleep. Hopefully, he would take it well. Hopefully, he wouldn't hate me forever. I thought these thoughts over and over in my head. Every step I took was another thought holding me back. I tried to push these thoughts away so I could have a clear mind when I tell him. I wasn't able to accomplish this simple task. My breathing became fast paced. I wanted to turn around and go back to trying to listen and understand how to tell the difference between two different angles within parallel lines and a line going through it. I didn't want to do this anymore. Though, the will to continue on and tell Yami everything I wanted to tell him was stronger.

Before I even knew it, I was in front of Yami house. More specifically, the front door. I fought the urge to turn around and go straight to my house and try to solve the problems myself. My hand lifted itself and curled into a small fist, knocking on the door. There was a silence. I knocked a second time. There was a voice on the other side telling me it was unlocked. My hand drifted to the doorknob and turned it, pushing the door open. I saw Yami, but he was laying on the floor on his stomach, looking at six rows of playing cards. Hesitantly, I walked inside and set my backpack next to the door, shutting the door also. I walked over to Yami and sat down next to him.

"Yami, can I ask what you're doing?" I asked, forgetting why I was here in the first place.

Without looking up at me, he said, "Solitare."

Yami flipped over card after card in the stack next to him, looking for a card he could use. Occasionally, he found a card he could use and set it in either a series of cards from a king to a two or in a pile of the same suit, the ace at the bottom. And rarely, he moved over an entire line of cards. I watched in curiousity as Yami played the game. Unfortunately, as Yami turned the pile of unused cards over and started looking for cards all over, I soon discovered that he would not be able to win this game. His face grew angry as he turn the pile over again and looked through the cards again. Finally, he snapped.

"What the hell is wrong with this game?! This is the third time I lost! Maybe I have to cheat to win, don't I?" Yami yelled to himself. I put a hand to his arm.

"Yami, Yami, calm down, it's only a game!" I reassured him.

"Yuugi, this game clearly doesn't want me to win."

"Yami, listen," I said. "Just shuffle the cards really good this time and restart the game. Maybe you'll win this time. And I'll help you, too."

He sighed and forced a smile. "Alright, Yuugi."

Yami collected the cards again and cut then in half, flipping them one on top of the other, alternating between halves of the deck. Sometimes, he'd take the cards and put small sections of the deck elsewhere in the stack of cards. I watched him as the cards shuffled against each other. Satisfied with how the cards were mixed up, he placed six cards in a row on the floor, then put a card on all but one card, then decended in that pattern from there. Soon, there was a column of six cards, then five cards, then four, and so on. Yami placed the stack of extra cards next to the lone card and flipped over the top card of each column of cards. The cards revealed were, from left to right starting with the column of six cards, the Queen of Spades, five of Spades, seven of Clubs, two of Hearts, six of Diamonds, and the Jack of Clubs. Yami sat back and observed the cards.

"I say that I got a pretty good chance of winning this, don't you, Yuugi?" Yami asked.

I nodded. "Yeah, you do." I smiled at him, and he returned the smile.

He looked back at the cards. He reached for the six and relocated it to the seven. Then, the moved the five to the six. He flipped over the upside-down cards from the lines of cards that had a moved card. This continued on, and soon, Yami had all four aces placed over the lined of cards, along with their correct suit of cards placed on top. Though, he still had a while before he's actually win. Eventually, his chances of winning this game became bleak. I observed the game and sometimes made a move he overlooked. Although, it wasn't helping still. Yami hadn't lost yet, but he might not win. Yami sighed.

"Yuugi, do you think we're going to win this game?" he asked me.

I shrugged. "Who knows?"

Yami turned back to the cards and studied them carefully. He had only a few more cards to place in the piles of the cards with the same suit. There were three cards left in the small stack of leftover cards. He turned over the first card, and it was unusable. Yami picked up the next card, and that was the same as the first one. He turned to me with a desperate look on his face. I pointed to the last card he still could use, a hopeful look on my face. He nodded and flipped over the card. I smiled in relief when I found out it was the card Yami needed to win the game. Yami placed that card in its correct place, and within the next thirty seconds he quickly ended the game in victory soon after. He turned back to me with a wide smile on his face.

"We won, Yuugi!" he exclaimed.

I shook my head. "No, you won."

"You helped me win, so we both won together," Yami said, placing a hand on mine. I grinned widely.

"Yeah, I guess we did!" I said.

Yami started to put all of the cards back into one stack. "So, Yuugi, what did you need?"

My face held a puzzled look. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, why did you come here? I thought you were doing homework with Ryou."

"Well, I came here to see you, is all," I said, still a little confused. Then, it hit me. I was here to tell Yami. Tell Yami that I had kissed him the day I stayed the night at his house. My heartrate quickened and my cheeks became plastered with a soft pink color.

Yami nodded. "Oh, okay. That's good you didn't forget about me." He turned to me and smiled. When he saw my face, he drew his eyebrows together in confusion. "What's wrong?"

Quickly, I said, "Actually, there was something I need to tell you about the day I slept over here."

"Oh? What do you need to tell me?" Yami turned his entire body to face me, cards in hand, absentmidedly shuffling them.

My cheeks darkened. "W-well, umm... I don't know how to say this..."

"It's okay, take your time. I'm listening," he reassured.

"Umm..." I brought my eyes to the floor and nibbled on a fingernail. "You see, uh... I'm not sure how I can tell you this... W-when you were sleeping, I sort of..."

"You sort of..." Yami repeated. That only made me more nervous.

"I-I.... I k-"

My statement got cut off by the front door opening abruptly. Yami and I both brought our attention to the person standing in the doorway. It was... Bakura and Ryou?

"Yuugi! Come here for a second!" Ryou said to me. I looked at Yami, and he nodded for me to go see what he needed. I stood up and walked over to him. Bakura shut the door after me and all three of us were standing on the porch.

"What do you want? I was about to tell him!" I yelled at Ryou.

"Don't tell him yet!" Ryou yelled back.

"But you told me I should," I whined. Ryou was confusing me about what I should do.

"Yeah, I know, but," he said, "Bakura told me that you shouldn't tell Yami yet."

I looked up at Bakura in confusion. He glared down at me. I asked him, "Why would you not want me to tell him yet?"

"I have a better idea," Bakura relpied.

"A better idea?"

"Yup." He crossed his arms tightly.

"Okay, then what's your idea?" I asked, crossing my own arms.

Ryou answered, "Every year, we have this party thing around New Year's, and that's when you should tell him."

Bakura added, "Except we're going to have it the second weekend of December."

"Just for you!" Ryou also added.

Bakura frowned. "No, that's not the reason. Me and Marik just want to burn stuff early."

He elbowed Bakura. "That's a horrible reason."

"Well, it's true," he grumbled.

I sighed. "Alright, so what am I supposed to tell Yami, then?"

"Tell him that your grandpa called our house and wanted you to come home early," Ryou suggested. I pouted.

"But that would be lying to Yami," I complained.

"Deal with it," Bakura snapped. "Now go."

I sighed again. "Alright. See you tomorrow, Ryou!"

Ryou waved, and I re-entered the house. Yami stood up and I walked over to him. He looked down at me with a small smile.

He said, "So, what did they want? Nothing bad, right?"

I blurted, "They said that my grandpa called them and wanted me to come home early." I feel guilty for lying to Yami. I didn't like to lie to people, and Yami was no different. He faked a pout.

"Aww, that's too bad," he said. I laughed quietly to myself.

"Yeah, it is." I walked over to where my backpack was placed and threw it over my shoulder. "Well, I'll see you tomorrow, Yami." I waved my fingers at him. He waved back.

"Bye," he said. Yami then suddenly called, "Wait, Yuugi!"

I turned my head to look over my shoulder, my hand on the door knob. "Yeah, Yami?"

"What were you going to tell me?" he asked.

I shook my head. "It's nothing, I promise!"

He laughed. "Alright, Yuugi. Bye."

"Bye, Yami!" I said one last time before walking out of his house with the heaviest feeling of guilt and regret on my shoulders.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Kurisuten: I AM STILL SO SORRY! This chapter wasn't even that long! Or good!

Kishichi: No, no, it's really good! You did good! I promise you!

Kurisuten: -sniff sniff- I-I guess so.

Kishichi: You've been under some stress, so it's alright. I mean, you asked your aibou-kun out again.

Kurisuten: I DIDN'T EVEN GET AN ANSWER YET.

Kishichi: O-okay.

Kurisuten: I really didn't think of a question for this chapter. But here's one for you guys to think about: **What do you think will happen on this party that Bakura and Ryou speak of? Please be specific.**

Kishichi: -gasp- Oh, I know what you're going to do.

Kurisuten: Good, huh?

Kishichi: I love the idea!

Kurisuten: Yes, yes! Anyway, -waves- Ja ne, minna-san!

Kishichi: Ja ne!


	14. My Puzzle of Dreams

Kurisuten: Mkay, so I'm glad to know that some people didn't hate my last chapter. I'm glad!

Kishichi: See? You worry too much!

Kurisuten: Yeah, yeah, I know. Well, This chapter is.... late. Again. XD

Kishichi: And what did you do this week?

Kurisuten: ......Nothing.

Kishichi: Exactly.

Kurisuten: Well, my fingers didn't want to type all week! They wanted to draw Malik!

Kishichi: But you couldn't find a screenshot of him that was "drawable".

Kurisuten: S-shut up!

Kishichi: -sigh- **Kurisuten doesn't own YuGiOh.** This is said every chapter, why keep saying it?

Kurisuten: I have no freaking clue.

Kishichi: Chapter starts now.

(Side note: If anyone has seen the movie Paranornal Activity, can you tell me if it's a good movie to watch? I know it's really scary, but I want to know from you guys if I should see it....)

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

The crisp cool air soon became a bitter coldness thickening the air. Trees became bare wooden limbs standing from the ground. At least three days a week, there was a grey blanket in the sky that darkened the day hours. Nights grew longer as days shortened. Breaths of air became light clouds that floated to the others at a higher altitude. Every now and again, a thin layer of white snow replaced the ground. Ice stuck to patches of the road and sidewalk, making it slicker than before. There wasn't a breath of wind that made the dead tree branches crack against each other. Everyday seemed pretty miserable, right? Wrong.

Despite the harsh weather conditions, the atmosphere of the crowns of people on the sidewalks and busier areas of the city was brighter and happier than it had been before. Something about the time setting made spirits lighten. Oh, right. It was finally December. It was only the first few days of December, though, but December nonetheless. There's only one day a year people are this cheerful, and that was the twenty-fifth; that day was Christmas. It was at least three weeks away, but each day was a day closer to that date. This is the month that moods are lighter. Suddenly, everybody is everybody's friend. Even teachers and work bosses are more lenient on things. All in all, December had to be the best month of the year.

Unfortunately, the only bad thing about it being so close to winter is that the sun rises later than it normally would. Therefore, do you know how many times I've woken up late because I thought it was still about four a.m.? A lot of times. One time, I woke up with three minutes to get to school, and that same day, Yami didn't get to school until an hour after it started. That's only happened once, so all of the other times, we barely made it to school on time. My poor first hour teacher must be really annoyed with me getting to class as soon at the bell rings. I guess that's the only downside to it being so close to winter. It'll probably be worse when it actually is the winter months. I'm going to have to get really used to the later-rising sun, or I'm going to have major problems in January.

You know those days where you don't want to get up, but you realize what day it is or what was going to happen that day? This is one of those mornings. The annoying tintinnabulation-like sound of the alarm clock ripped me from my light sleep, and I rolled onto my stomach, folding my arms under my chin. I wanted to ignore the clock, and I forgot it was even going off. Thankfully, it automatically shut itself of two minutes later. I pressed my ear to my arms and closed my eyes once more, drifting off into a sleep once again. Too bad it didn't last for too long, because the acursed clock rang through the air a second time. Groaning, I pulled an arm from under my head and hit the "off" button on the clock with brutal force. I yawned loudly. I thought to myself, why even get up? Why do I have to go to school today? What's wrong with staying home for a day? Then, I remembered that it was finally Friday, the last day before a well-deserved weekend. I pressed my palms on the pillow and stretched my back out, pushing my upper body from the bed. If I get up now, I can guarantee I'd be on time to school, plus I plan to come home straight after school so I can sleep a little more. Three hours of trying to sleep in a freezing cold room and I'm expected not to be tired?

I was very sleepy, yes, but somehow I pulled myself from out of bed and planted my feet to the floor unsteadily. After regaining my lost balence, I dragged my feet along the floor, bottoms of the pajama pants covering the tops and heels of both feet. I rubbed one eye as I walked toward the window. Lifting a hand, I pulled back enough of the blinds blocking the view to see my miniscule-sized portion of the small city. The sun hadn't risen yet, but I wouldn't even have been able to tell if it had or not anyway. Dark grey clouds blanketed the sky, which would be a lighter shade of grey but still have a dark tint to it within a few hours. The street, sidewalks, and numerous driveways were soaked with melted water that used to take the form of pure white snow. The front lawn, and a few others as well, had small patches of ice, and the sidewalk and street most likely had invisible spots of ice as well. I concluded the tempurature wasn't enough for it to start snowing (though that might change later in the day.), but it was enough to freeze me from the inside-out. I put my free hand up to the glass, and I shivered upon contact with it. It was, indeed, undeniably cold. If I could, I'd stay home from school and stay under the covers of the bed all day until spring crept on the city. Unfortunatly, that was impossible.

Sighing to myself, I dragged myself back to the bed I had been asleep (sort of) in and glanced at the clock. 5:57 a.m., it flashed. I hadn't known how early it really was. I shook my head to myself and crossed the room to the lightswitch, flicking it to "on". I flinched as the artificial light flooded the once dark room. I squinted my eyes, trying to get used to the brightness. It must have been at least two minutes before I yawned again and fully opened both eyes. I considered the weather outside and tried to decide what I should wear to not be cold. Okay, scratch that. I considered the weather and tried to decide what I should wear so at least I won't be trying to thaw out my body from the ice forming on my extremidies, arms, and legs. That sounds about right. After much thought, I settled on wearing one pair of jeans and a pair of sweatpants over those. It'll most likely be... somewhat successful. For the clothing from the waist up, I picked a plain black long-sleeved shirt (like I really need to impress anyone), then a thin black jacket over the shirt, then a thicker black and grey striped jacket over that. Going over my image and clothing choises in the mirror hung on the wall next to the closet doors, I concluded that I looked good enough. It was Friday, and it was also just school. I wasn't going to a funeral. Next problem was deciding what to do about my feet. Regular socks and the same untied, loose shoes were going to do nothing. Two pairs of regular socks and the same untied, loose shoes were going to at least somewhat help and I was just going to settle for that. My shoes were still at the bottom of the stairs, and I wasn't going to put them on now anyway; at the moment, there was no point. I pulled both pairs of socks over my feet and sighed in optimism. I was very confident today that I was not going to look like a human popsicle. A human popsicle with the craziest hair in existance.

I took one more quick glance at the clock, and it read 6:13. I pushed my mouth into a sideways pout. I took a little bit more time than I'd had hoped, but I could mind less. Mentally shrugging, I exited my room and shuffled my feet to the bathroom. I pushed the lightswitch upward and let the light illuminate the room and through the doorway on the hallway floor. I picked up a hairbrush off of the counter and quickly ran it through my hair until it looked like I hadn't just woken up. It didn't look that bad to begin with, but better to be safe than sorry. I set the brush back onto the counter and took a step back, pressing my hands onto my small hips, studying my apperance. I didn't look like a dead person, so I guess I looked good enough. I wasn't one of those vain people that took at least half an hour just to put eye make-up on alone (considering I don't wear make-up.), but I didn't care much about apperance. At least I don't look like a hobo who hasn't showered in three years, I'd be pretty happy with how I look. I nodded to myself and left the room, shutting the light off as I left.

I ran down the stairs, taking two steps down at a time and skipping a stair on the way down. I had almost tripped on the last stair, but I had thankfully caught myself before falling face first to the floor. I walked around to the kitchen and looked through the refridgerator and the cabitnets to find something edible for breakfast. In the end, I settled on just a small cup of orange juice. After pouring the drink and putting the carton back in the refridgerator, I hopped onto the counter and swung my dangling legs back and forth. I took a small sip of juice every now and again, but I was mostly staring at the same place on the floor through the darkness. I was staring at nothing in particular, and I wasn't thinking of much either. Mostly, I was just staring blankly with a empty mind while absentmindedly drinking the cup of orange juice I was holding. I brought the drink to my lips and realized I had already drinken it all. I tossed the empty cup in the sink next to me and hopped off of the counter. My socks slid across the floor, and I fell backward, though grabbing the counter to regain my balance before I hit the ground. I blinked, then stood upright again and walked back up to the direction of my room acting as if nothing had happened.

Upon entrance, I looked at the clock again. Six twenty-five. I expect Yami would be here shortly. I sighed and walked over to my bed and fell back first onto the matress. I stuck my arms out perpendicular to the rest of my body on the bed and the bottom half of my lower legs, including my feet, were hung loosely over the side of the bed, though my toes were barely tracing outlines on the floor. I stared at the now illuminated ceiling. Like I was in the kitchen, I was not thinking anything. I wasn't falling asleep, however. I was thinking of blank slates of nothingness while laying on my bed and staring just as blankly as my thoughts at the ceiling. I appeared to be dead in another's perspective. That is, if you don't count the steady rising and falling of my cheat as it followed by breaths. Somewhere in my brain, I was asleep. I didn't seem asleep, but some part of my brain was shut down and was not concious. Slowly, after a while, my eye lids slowly slid shut...

My whole self awoke quickly as I heard a door opening downstairs, right under my room. I suspected Yami, and I knew I was right anyway. I had told him a while back that if I was here he could unlock the front door and walk in like it was his own home. I mean, he knew where the hidden key was since the first day I knew him. I jolted up and quickly ran down the stairs, not counting how many stairs I skipped or how many times I almost fell down the stairs. I clumsily appeared infront of the doorway and I straighted out my shirt and smoothed the legs of my pants. I stood straight and sighed. I met eyes with Yami, who was staring at me with a look that wondered how I could be so nervous and clumsy all of the time. I smiled sheepishly, and he chuckled to himself quietly. A breath of cold air hit me, and I quickly grabbed Yami by the arm and pulled him inside the house and shut the door quickly, shivering. Yami laughed, and I had to laugh with him.

"Well, good morning," he said, a small hint of laughter in his voice. I smiled and nodded at him.

Not even two minutes later, Yami and I were walking toward school in the freezing cold. The thermometer on the front porch had read thirty-nine degrees. The sun had only barely peeked over the horizon, but an abundance of clouds still covered the visible sky. People that were also walking along the sidewalks were huddling close to each other (Yes, even the tough guys that looked like they had five girls played into their hands.) trying to keep themselves warm, and Yami and I were no different. I had my hands jammed into my jacket pockets tightly and I had my left arm pressed against Yami's warm jacket, but Yami was still shivering. Everyone was, though. The scene had been the same for a week and a half now; this was nothing new to anyone.

Yami sighed, his breath visible in the air. "It's gotten too cold lately. I don't like it when it's this cold," he said to me. As he spoke, puffs of air formed from the breath he was exhaling. I nodded, trying to get myself closer to Yami to keep myself warm.

I agreed with him. "Yeah. I like the cold, though. Just... I don't like _being_ cold." I watched the breath become visible before my face. Yami hummed in agreement with me.

"Let's not talk about how cold it is for the rest of the way to school. It's just a little..." Yami searched for the right word. "Depressing."

"You're right," I said. "How about the fact that Christmas is a few weeks away?"

Yami's face lit up quickly. "That reminds me, after school, there's something that I have to give to you." I tilted my head to the side, looking up at Yami. Give something to me? What does he need to give to me? And what does that have anything to do with Christmas? I thought of my options as I continued on with the conversation.

"Really? That's cool! What is it?" I asked in anticipation. Yami shook his head while smiling.

"Sorry, Yuugi. I can't tell you yet."

I pouted. "Why not?" I whined pathetically.

Yami chuckled. "If I do, it won't be a surprise."

Gasping, I held onto Yami's arm, jumping up and down in excitement. "Oh, oh! You didn't mention it was a surprise!"

He looked over at me with a large smile. "Yup. It's a surprise. You'll like it. I promise."

I smiled back. "I hope so!"

Then, before I knew or realized it, Yami and I had already arrived on school grounds. Yami turned to walk in the direction his class was and waved at me. "Well, see you at lunch, Yuugi!" he called. I stood and waved back at him, smiling.

"See you, Yami!" I called back. I turned to walk away, then I heard Yami turn back around and run back over to me. He placed a hand on my shoulder to stop me. I turned to look at him. "Yami?"

"I forgot to say," he said, "I like how you look today. It's different than from what you usually wear." Yami grinned at me, and I couldn't help but let my cheeks flush pink while nodding happily.

o-o-o

In the end, school dismissed early. It started to snow heavily, so the principal made an announcement that we could just leave. This happened at the end of third hour, and I have to say that this wasn't a bad way to end a Friday. Though, I didn't think it would snow this early. And I also didn't expect the school to just let us go so simply. I would think they would wait until the weather got worse. I'm not complaining or anything, but it just makes me wonder. Then again, nothing really makes much sense anymore, anyway.

Taking one step outside, I regretted it. It was colder than it was earlier this morning. Again, this didn't make sense. Isn't it supposed to be warmer in the day than at night? Isn't it supposed to warm up as the day went on? I sighed to myself and my mind told me that there was no point in even asking. I tried to keep myself walking forward instead of randomly latching onto a random bypasser to stay warm. Overall, I was doing a good job of not doing so. I stood at the edge of the sidewalk, waiting for an oppertunity to cross the street. I spaced out, even after I had plenty of chances to cross and not get hit by a car. I wasn't cold nor warm anymore, or at least I didn't notice if I was one or the other. I was staring at the same place on the ground for a while. One question flashed in my head repeatedly the entire time, just that one question. What was the 'surprise' Yami was talking about?

Suddenly, I felt myself fall forward, but there was another person falling with me. Their arms were around my shoulders like they were trying to give me a hug, and their body weight was pushing me forward. I made a quick attempt to scream, but it turned into a short gasp. I caught myself halfway to the ground, and I took a moment to regain my balance. I turned my head around to see who had attacked me. I saw Ryou, still holding me, and he looked as if he had fallen in a lake of ice. I half glared at him.

"Ryou, what are you doing," I asked dully, not even bothering to even make my statement sound like a question.

He tightened his grip. "I-i-it's f-freezing out h-here!" Ryou studdered. I nodded.

"Yes. It is cold. That has been established." I was trying to sound as blunt as I could without giving in to the cold.

"Help me, Yuugi! It's way too cold out here!" he said. I sighed. This wasn't the first time this has happened. So, I could easily predict what would happen next. A voice appeared behind us.

"Hey, Yuugi," it said. "First Yami, now Ryou. Make up your mind with who you want already."

Ryou and I looked to see who had said that. Unsurprisingly, it was Bakura. I had already knew that because one, either him or Marik would say something like that, and two, this whole scenario has happened many times before. Ryou let me go and ran over to the other, latching himself to Bakura instead.

"Kura, it's cold!" he said to Bakura. Bakura sighed.

"Yes, Ryou. It's cold. This is nothing new," he said. Ryou didn't reply. I sighed and crossed my arms, hiding my hands under my arms trying to keep them warm. I tapped my foot and occasionaly rocked back and forth on my heels to try to keep the blood in my body flowing. Sometimes, I lifted a hand to brush the white snow that was piling on my shoulders. I wondered where Yami and Marik could be. Maybe Bakura knew, so I asked him.

"Bakura, where's Yami and Marik?" I didn't cease attempting to not shiver as I spoke.

Bakura scoffed. "That bastard Marik went to school, then left after first hour. Don't know where the hell Yami is, though." Ah, okay, so Marik decided to ditch. I'm starting to think he dragged Yami along with him. Then again, I doubt Yami would even let him, so I deleted that last thought from my mind. I nodded, clenching my teeth to try to keep them from chattering against each other.

"Ah. That makes sense," I agreed. Bakura just hummed and went back to glaring angrily at nothing in particular. Ryou occasionally pulled himself closer to Bakura, complaining about how cold it was today. I scanned the area to look for Yami. I didn't see him, and I was starting to think that Marik did drag him off school grounds. I pushed my mouth into a sideways pout and crossed my arms tighter across my chest. I was growing very impatient, and I tried to hide that fact the best I could. Every now and again, Ryou would ask me something, and I would just answer that question with an appathetic one-word answer. I continued to look for Yami desperately. Finally, I had to give up and get off the school campus and head home where there was warmth. I uncrossed my arms.

"Okay, there's no point in standing around. Let's go," I said, sighing loudly. Bakura threw a hand in the air.

"Finally! I was starting to think you were going to stand around waiting for nothing!" he shouted at me. I shrugged and turned around to walk back home. I took a step forward and almost collided with someone else. I looked up, and I saw who I had been looking for the past five minutes.

Yami said semi-akwardly, "So, this is where you were. I thought you weren't going to show up."

I tilted my head sideways. "What? Where were you?" I asked, taking a step backward.

"Where I always am after school..." he answered, bringing a hand to the back of his head. I mentally slapped myself for not thinking of that. Bakura laughed in the background, saying something about how I was stupid for not thinking of obvious conclusions. I only ignored him. Yami then asked, "Are... we going to leave or what?" I nodded quickly before dragging him with me across the street. Bakura and Ryou followed, Ryou still holding Bakura as if he were glued to him. I stood myself close to Yami, though not how Ryou was with Bakura. My arm was just barely touching his own arm, and that was good enough for me. I then remembered this morning.

"So, Yami," I said, looking up at him. "What's that surprise you were talking about?"

Without looking at me, he replied, "You're just going to have to find out, aren't you?" Yami smiled and glanced at me out of the corner of his eye. I pouted.

"Aw, you can't tell me?" I whined jokingly. Yami shook his head. "That's no fun!" I said, crossing my arms cutely. Yami laughed.

"It's not even going to be fifteen minutes when we get to my house! I'm sure you can wait that long, right?" Yami turned his head to look at me, and I uncrossed my arms, letting them fall to my sides loosely. I smiled widely.

"Fifteen minutes of not knowing what you were talking about," I said. Yami smiled just as wide as I was.

"You can wait that long, can't you?" he asked. I shook my head. Yami sighed and laughed. "Maybe if you walk a little faster, we'd get to my house faster."

I crossed my arms again. "But it's cold. It's difficult to walk as fast as I usually do," I said. I heard Bakura, who was behind us, say something else, but I didn't catch what he had said. Yami sighed.

"You're saying that you can't walk because of the tempurature?" he asked. I nodded. Yami chuckled to himself. "So you're blaming the weather now?"

"I'm blaming the weather now," I agreed.

Yami was now laughing loudly. "Yuugi, you do know how rediculous that sounds, right?"

I smiled as wide as I could and nodded quickly. "Yup!"

Yami ceased his laughter and look at me with a soft smile. "Yuugi, you're a really funny person. I like being around you."

My face switched from smiling-happiness to shock. My face warmed as a crimson blush formed across it. I brought a hand to my face and put it into a loose fist, pressing my knuckles against my mouth. I looked to the ground, my heart beating rapidly. I shouldn't be freaking out over small comments like these, but I can't help myself. Comments like these made my heart skip a beat. Comments like these mean everything to me. Comments like these slowly helped me solve the puzzle of all of the reasons why I'm so in love with Yami. I shifted my eyes sideways to glance at Yami, and he was looking down at me with a slightly puzzled expression.

He hesitated, "Yuugi, are you okay...?"

Bakura laughed loudly. "Oh course he's not! You don't notice that Yuugi always blushes when you say things like that? You don't notice that Yuugi always blushes when you barely touch his hand or something?"

I suddenly became nervous. What if Bakura decides to be the asshole he is and tells Yami everything? Thankfully, Bakura didn't say anything after that, so I was safe for now.

Yami glanced over his shoulder at Bakura. "Yes, I do notice, Bakura."

Bakura clicked his tounge. "Good to know you aren't oblivious to everything."

Scratch that. Bakura was definately going to tell Yami within this conversation. I stayed quiet and listened, despite this realization.

Yami quit walking and turned around to stare at Bakura, hands placed on his hips. "What do you mean by that?"

Bakura stopped walking infront of Yami and nudged Ryou off of him. Ryou let go of his hold on Bakura and backed himself away until he was standing next to me. Bakura said, "What I mean is that you must have a thick skull to not realize."

Yami glared darkly. "What are you talking about?"

I looked at Ryou, and he gave me a questioning look. I whispered lowly, "Bakura's going to tell Yami."

Ryou whispered back, "We don't know that yet, Yuugi."

I bit on one of my fingernails nervously, watching the conversation between Yami and Bakura.

Bakura smirked. "Well, we were talking about Yuugi, right? So me calling you an oblivious bastard must have something to do with Yuugi, right?" Yami held the glare on his face, not once changing expressions. Bakura started to walk, going around Yami. "You put the pieces together." He started walking down the street again, Ryou following him immediately. I looked up at Yami, and I noticed his face expression changed from angry to thoughtful. I tugged at his jacket sleeve, trying to gain his attention.

"Yami, c'mon," I said quietly. Yami looked back down at me, and I smiled hopefully. He softly smiled back.

"Okay, Yuugi, let's go then."

And so, life goes on as usual. Nothing has changed, right? Wrong. Yami was thinking about what Bakura had said, I was sure of it. I knew he would figure it out eventually. Maybe he already has figured it out and is keeping quiet about it. I knew something was different between us now, either for the better or worse. That, I didn't know. I didn't know if things are suddenly going to be sunshiny-happy between us (forget that, please), or if we were slowly going to drift farther and farther apart. I decided to test which it would be.

If Yami had figured it out already and we weren't going to be able to stay close, then if I try to get myself physically closer to him Yami would probably try to push me away from him. I took a deep breath and stepped sideways, reaching my arms around the arm that was closest to me. I layed my head on the arm I was holding and looked up at Yami. He was staring down at me with the same soft smile as before.

"You cold?" he asked me, his voice still as smooth and caring as before. I nodded, holding Yami's arm tighter. He chuckled quietly. "Am I warm enough?" I nodded again. "That's good," he sighed. Based on what had just happened, I concluded things were still okay between us. Either that, or he hasn't found out yet.

I closed my eyes. I could recognize this feeling of holding Yami close to me. It was, to me, the best feeling. I couldn't say kissing Yami was the best feeling, because one time it was an accident and the other time he was asleep. Until the day I can say kissing Yami makes my heart pound the most, I can settle with having Yami in such close contact with me. His body was warm, and it made me feel like I was finally okay. I smiled to myself. I felt like the luckiest person in the world right now, just by being able to hold Yami so close to me. Moments like this were the ones that made me cherish my life.

Suddenly, Yami said, "Oh, wait here, Yuugi." I snapped out of my trance and gazed at Yami.

"What? Why? Where are you going?" I asked, unaware of where we were.

"To get what I told you about this morning! Don't tell me you forgot!" Yami said. I looked around and saw we were infront of Yami's house. I shivered as I realized how cold it really was. I nodded, folding my arms and burying my hands within my arms.

"Wait," I said. "I don't realize why I can't go inside with you."

"Because! I don't want you to see what I want to give you!" Yami replied.

I pouted. "I won't look."

Yami gave me a look. "It won't even take me twenty seconds." With that, he had already ran to the front door and quickly unlocked the door and ran inside. I stared at the empty doorway from my place on the sidewalk, then looked at the ground. The ground at my feet had a layer of snow, and falling snow piled on the tops of my shoes. My arms fell to my sides loosely. My cheeks and nose were numb from the cold, but there was nothing I wanted to do about it myself. The cold hit my hands hard. My mind told me to refold my arms and keep my hands warm, but I ignored it. I spaced out again, not remembering my surroundings. I was standing still, completely unmoving.

I suddenly jumped when I felt a hand on my shoulder. I looked up to see Yami, holding one hand behind his back. I blinked, then smiled. Yami repeated my action.

"Eighteen seconds," Yami said. "I counted."

I put on a teasing look. "So you can count to eighteen. Good to know that much," I said, a playful tone occupying my voice.

Yami laughed. "Hey, let's see you count that high."

"I can count to _nineteen_," I bragged. Yami smiled widely. Yami and I had the silliest converastions and arguments. They brightened the darkness in my day. He made me laugh, even if I didn't feel like smiling. Happiness was a good feeling to have, and Yami knew how to create a lighter mood even in the darkest times.

Yami then took one of my hands and placed it in his own hand. I looked up at him, puzzled. He said, "Okay, now close your eyes."

"Close my eyes? What is it you're giving me?" I asked.

"You won't find out if you don't close your eyes," Yami responded. I sighed and pressed my eyes shut.

"Alright, Yami, I'm closing my eyes," I said. Not even three seconds later, I felt something being placed in my hand. It was light in weight, though I couldn't tell what it was. Yami removed his hand from mine.

He said, "Alright, Yuugi, you can open your eyes." I followed what he said and reopened my eyes. I looked at what was put into my open hand, and I saw a small paper box made of a shiny gold and silver paper. I glanced back up at Yami.

"So, this was what you wanted to give me?" I asked, taking a step toward Yami. He sighed disappointingly, and I gasped, thinking he thought that I didn't think it wasn't good enough. "I like it and everything! But I mean, why an origami box?"

Yami held a finger to my lips, silencing me. "Yuugi, open the box. There is something inside of it."

Something inside of the box? Hesitantly, I brought my other hand to the thin paper lid of the origami box made with golden paper and pulled it open. I then reached inside of it and my fingers twitched when they came in contact with something metal. I wrapped my fingers around it and pulled out the object carefully. It was thin silver chain, but something was attached to it. I pulled the object out of the box even further and, at the end of the chain, was a small charm. It was an upside down square pyramid made of a sort of solid, baked clay. There was a strange eye symbol carved on one of the sides of the charm. I held it in my hand and studied it, taking in every detail of it. I glanced back up at Yami.

"Yami, this is really..." I struggled to find a good word to use, but there were no words to describe what I felt like. There were many different descriptive words running through my head, though none of them could possibly accurately tell the tale of what I was thinking. Instead, I said, "Why?"

Yami smiled. "When I got bored over the weekend, I found some old clay and made this. And I thought I'd give the end result to you." Upon hearing this, I leaned closer toward Yami in surprise.

"You made this?" I asked in amazement. Yami nodded. I drew away from him and looked back at the gift. It was so shockingly amazing, I don't know how I could possibly put my feelings into words. "Yami, this is really beautiful," I said quietly, finishing my earlier incomplete though.

"I'm glad you think so," he replied. I looked back at him, and I gazed into his deep crimson eyes. They held a soft emotion that seemed to calm the storm of confusion inside of my head. My breath became short. Yami stepped closer to me, reaching for the chain in my hand. I watched his movements. There was a small hook on part of the silver chain, and he detached it, holding an end of the chain in each hand. He reached to my neck and wrapped the chain around it, rehooking it in the back. I lifted a hand to touch the metal placed loosely around me. I looked back at Yami. Simply, he said, "It's a necklace. You're supposed to wear it."

I parted my lips to say something, but no words could possibly be said. Finally, I uttered a small, meaningful sentence. "Thank you."

Yami reached out to me with both hands, taking my hands in his. The origami box that held the necklace fluttered into the snow. I looked him directly into his eyes, able to study even more of those eyes of his even closer than before. With a soft, gentle smile, Yami replied to me in a smooth, caring voice.

"You're welcome, Yuugi."

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Kurisuten: KYAAAAA! This chapter is the fluffiest chapter yet! I love it so much! Love it, love it, love it!

Kishichi: Okay, calm yourself down a bit. It was a really good chapter, though!

Kurisuten: Thank you so much! I was able to type the last of this with shaky hands...

Kishichi: What happened?

Kurisuten: ...The hair dryer almost blew up.

Kishichi: It didn't blow up.

Kurisuten: ...There were sparks. Almost caught on fire. Scary...

Kishichi: I thought you liked fire.

Kurisuten: What I like is explosives thrown off into the middle of the street and exploding in rainbow colors. What I like is pits of fire and sitting around it throwing stuff into it while holding a stick with a marshmellow on it inside of the fire. What I don't like is almost being burnt alive by a freaking hair dryer.

Kishichi: ...Akward.

Kurisuten: Really. Anyway, guess what chapter is next! It's the epic awesome chapter with the epic awesome party! And, here's a fair warning! **The next chapter WILL HAVE THE LIME SCENE IN IT.**

Kishichi: Finally you're putting it in!

Kurisuten: Yes, yes! There is no question for this chapter, however. Instead of a question about the chapter, here's one about the next chapter. **What in the hell is going to happen that results in a lime?** Think about that one and tell me in your reviews! I thank you all very much for sticking with me for this long!

Kishichi: We really appreciate it!

Kurisuten: Ja ne, minna-san!


	15. Break Me, Shake Me

(GOMENASAI GOMENASAI GOMENASAI! School has been a horrid bitch to me lately and stopped me from typing this as much as I'd want to! I've been trying my hardest to write it though! Please stay with me!)

Kurisuten: I really appreciate you guys that have stayed with the story this long. I re-read the story for myself from chapter 1 to 14, and I discovered that my writing style in the story changed majorly. It's gotten a lot better, and it's all because of you guys! You people are the ones that kept me writing this story! You are all so encouraging! When I first put this story up, I had no idea so many people would like it. It is my most popular story and I'm so happy about it! So thank you guys so much!

Kishichi: Yes, thanks a lot!

Kurisuten: But yes, it's good to be back from California. I didn't get to finish writing the chapter on paper though. Sob. Anyway, the long awaited scene you've been waiting for has finally risen! That's right, it's the **lime chapter!**

Kishichi: There's a lot to tell in this chapter, so that's why it's a little longer than the other chapters.

Kurisuten: Yes, yes. I've been working on this for a while, so that's why it's a little bit late. This time, I have a good reason. But, I mean, if you guys don't mind, please don't give me bad critisism on this chapter. It's my first lime scene that I've written, so it's not that good. Don't kill me if I don't live to your expectations.

Kishichi: They didn't hate your other chapters, they won't hate this one.

Kurisuten: I guess. Anyway, the story is coming to it's end. This isn't the last chapter, but the end of the story is pretty close. So sorry about that!

Kishichi: It's really disappointing, but it has to end sometime. It's really sad, I know.

Kurisuten: Well, it's not ending yet, so it's all good. And there's a new chapter added! Read to find out who! No disclaimer, since it's in EVERY OTHER CHAPTER FOR FOURTEEN CHAPTERS.

Kishichi: Thirteen and a half.

Kurisuten: Oh well. And chapter start!

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"Yuugi, Ryou and Yami are here!" my grandpa called from the bottom of the stairs.

I looked over my image in the mirror one last time. Form-fitting black shirt, black straight-leg jeans, and a warm black jacket. I didn't intentionally wear all black, but it added a nice touch to the neckbelt I had worn today. The necklace Yami had given me a week ago still rested above my chest. The shoes with the laces tucked inside of the shoe were placed on my feet carelessly. My hair seemed slightly less neat than usual, but it looked better this way with what I had chosen to wear. I twisted my body to look at the back of me. I turned to other way. I adjusted my belt to where it was tilted slightly to the side a bit more. I had it to where it was only through one of the belt loops on my pants and had the buckle pushed off to the side, tilting the whole belt downward. I stood with my hands on my hips and nodded to myself in the mirror. I looked better than I thought I would. I took a quick glance at the clock, and it read 6:01. Ryou and Yami were right on time.

"Be right there!" I yelled down to my grandpa, leaning around the doorway. I took one last look at my room to make sure I hadn't forgotten anything. Satisfied, I turned the bedroom light off and ran down the hallway and down the stairs. I rounded the last corner and saw my grandpa holding the door open, Yami and Ryou standing in the doorway. I smiled and walked over to the group.

Yami smiled and asked, "Ready to go?" I nodded, walking out of the house to join the other two.

"Yuugi," my grandpa said, "you're staying at Yami's house afterwards, right?" I nodded.

"Yeah, I am," I replied.

Grandpa smiled. "Alright. You kids have fun now." He waved at us, and we all said our goodbyes to the elder.

Tonight was going to be the best. Tonight was going to be my night. Tonight, I was going to be me. Why, you ask? Tonight was the night of the party. The party Ryou and all of the others have out of boredom and fun. But that wasn't why I was happy about tonight. Tonight, I was going to tell Yami everything. I was going to tell him about the kiss I stole. Most importantly, I was going to tell Yami about my feelings for him. That's right, tonight, I was going to tell Yami that I loved him. I'm nervous, yes, but I'm glad that I don't have to hide anything anymore. I didn't want to tell him now, though. I going to wait until we're caught alone. If we aren't ever alone, then I'd make everyone leave. That's how much I want Yami to know. If I have to, I'll yell it out with everyone around. I don't care. I will do anything to get Yami to know. Tonight was going to be the simplest form of the best night ever. And I'll make sure it is.

Ryou grabbed the sleeve on my jacket and pulled on it. He examined the jacket for a few seconds as I watching him in confusion. I asked, "Ryou, mind telling me what you're doing?" Yami looked over soon after and looked away, laughing. Ryou looked back up at me with wide eyes. I raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"Yuugi, how are you not cold?!" he asked, voice raised in confusion. Yami was still laughing next to me. I sighed.

"Want to explain what you mean?" I answered his question with another question.

Ryou was still looking over the jacket, currently messing with the bottom of the jacket sleeve. "Your jacket is so thin! How the heck are you not cold?!"

Upon hearing this, Yami stopped laughing and started to examine my jacket for himself. I sighed loudly. Yami asked, astonished, "How can you not be cold in this jacket?!"

Ryou nodded. "Yeah, seriously!"

I snatched my arms away from both Ryou and Yami, crossing my arms tightly. "I am cold! I didn't care if I was cold or not when I wore this!"

"Oh," the two both said in unison. There was a pause. Then, simultaniously, Ryou and Yami both took a side of the jacket and pushed it down to reveal my shoulders. The cold hit them and I shivered. I glared at them both before pulling the jacket back up.

"What the hell are you two doing?!" I interrogated angrily. The two of them could only stare at me in shock.

"Yuugi," Ryou said, "It's the middle of December and you're wearing a tank top shirt _and_ a thin jacket?!"

Yami added, "What were you thinking when you were looking for something to wear?!"

I fiddled with the zipper at the bottom of the jacket, zipping the jacket up three-fourths of the way up. "I was thinking that I don't care how cold it was and I'll wear whatever I pleased. I didn't know you two would make such a big deal about it," I grumbled.

Ryou pouted. "Sorry, but I was curious."

Yami just shrugged. "I don't really have a reason."

I glanced at Yami. "At least Ryou apologized."

Then, Yami, copying what Ryou had done plenty of times in the past, hugged me tightly from behind, arms wrapped around my shoulders. In an unnaturally sweet voice, he said, "Aw, I'm sorry, Yuugi-chan!"

I looked at him in slight horror. "Yuugi-_chan_?? Are you okay, Yami?"

Laughing, Yami let go of me. "I'm totally okay. I just couldn't apologize unless I did something I knew would freak you out, you know?"

I crossed my arms tightly across my chest. "I didn't say you had to let go," I mumbled loud enough that only I could hear what I had said.

The sky was a dark shade of indigo when the streetlights flickered on one by one down the line. The tempurature was steadily dropping as the night grew closer. The moon appeared bright and full, helping to light the streets. Yami, Ryou, and I were standing close to each other, laughing about a stupid story that one of us had told. We realized it didn't have to be cold if we didn't want it to be. The atmosphere around us was bright and warm, despite the actual tempurature and the dark sky. Even though the cold nipped at our face and cheeks, that didn't mean we had to address it. In fact, it was like tempurature didn't exist anymore.

Ryou turned to me. "Yuugi, you won't believe this!"

I gave a sarcastic look. "Really now? Let's find out if I believe it or not."

"Earlier today, Marik and Bakura tore down the fence between mine and Yami's house. Then they made a huge fire pit in the backyard right in the middle of the two houses. It looks a lot cooler than it sounds, really." Ryou folded his arms and smiled, impressed with the two of them for once. I laughed.

"That sounds like something they'd do," I commented. "How'd they tear the fence down?"

Sighing, Yami said, "What do you think?"

I thought for a minute, staring at the sky. I decided to pick a non-obvious answer besides fire. "A giant metal bar?"

Ryou laughed loudly. "Actually, yes!" I had to laugh with him. I was expecting them to try to burn it to the ground. Wait, metal can't burn. Maybe they melted it, then beat the remains of the fence into the ground. Who knows? With Bakura and Marik, anything's possible.

Yami added, "Hey, I helped!"

I put my hands behind my back and linked them. "Really? What did you do to help them?"

Yami pointed to himeself with his thumb. "I found the giant metal bar." Ryou and I looked at each other, then started laughing uncontrolably. Yami folded his arms. "What's so funny?"

With my index finger, I wiped away an imaginary tear. "Nothing. Just the way you said that made me laugh." Ryou nodded, laughter dying down. I sighed heavily. "That was great."

Yami slightly pouted, then jabbed his finger into my side. "How was the way I said it funny?"

I made a high pitched squeak when Yami poked me. Ryou and Yami both cringed and covered the ear closest to me. I glanced at them, confused. I asked them, "What's wrong?"

"How do you get your voice to get that high pitched?" Ryou asked in return. "That seriously hurt my ear."

"Are you secretly a dolphin?" Yami also asked.

I crossed my arms. "I thought I was a baby panda."

He shrugged. "Who knows. You could be both at the same time."

Sighing, I jokingly bumped into Yami. "Pick one. I can't be both, silly." I giggled to myself. Yami could be so hopeless sometimes. But I guess that's part of why I like him. Maybe it's the way he always acts altogether. I like all of what he can be. Every last bit of it. And I wanted it to myself. Me and myself only. Yami was going to be mine, starting tonight. Nothing was going to stand in my way.

Yami bumped me back. "I said you can be both, so you can," he said. I giggled shortly before bumping into Yami again. And that was the end of it. Yami, Ryou, and I all laughed. We all could be so silly sometimes, and we can argue over the stupidest things that aren't even fights. Those arguements are just another way we can laugh at ourselves and have more fun. In fact, I don't remember one real fight we've had. Yami and I, I mean. Everything we do together always ends up a permenant memory that we look back on years from now and end up laughing at ourselves. And I'm glad they exist.

I could see a house in the distance. What's so different about it? There are tons on houses in the distance. What stood out on this particular house was the fact that it looked like every light in that house (plus the backyard!) was on. It had it's own aurora of different colored lights-differing from regular white light to red and purple light-appearing from over the rooftop. From as far back as I currently was, I could hear the faint sound of music, so I assumed it must be from the same bright house. Automatically, I knew exactly who lived in the house.

Nudging Ryou, I pointed to the house and said, "This is just a guess, but I think I can see your house from here, Ryou. Correct me if I'm wrong."

Ryou suddenly gasped. "Wow, Kura and Marik did all of that in under half an hour? How awesome!" He reached over and gripped my hand, trying to pull my along with him as he attempted to pick up his pace to a run. "Come on! We have to get there! Right now!"

Carefully, I pulled my hand back. "It's okay. I think I'll walk actually." Smiling sheepishly, I walked slowly until Yami was next to me once again. I glanced up at him and was surprised to see him staring at me, no expression, with his arms folded across his chest. I tilted my head slightly sideway, confused. "Yami?" I asked him. I suddenly let out a gasp when Yami took hold of my hand. I knew my face was growing redder by the seconds just after the sudden contact. Even in the dim orange light the streetlamps were giving off, my blush was obvious by now. Despite this, I was still able to keep my breathing pace under control. I asked nervously, "Yami, what are you doing?"

"Yuugi," he said, suddenly smiling, "the faster we get there, the quicker we don't have to be cold." Yami chuckled quietly at his own comment. A large, wide smile across my face. Still holding onto Yami's hand, I dashed forward toward the designated direction. Yami called to me, "Hey, Yuugi, slow down!"

I looked over my shoulder. "The faster we get there, the quicker we don't have to be cold!" I replied, copying his words. Yami shook his head, still smiling, and ran with me. I heard Ryou laugh and he started to follow behind us, able to catch up to me quickly. The wind hitting my face numbed my cheeks and nose, but I was too busy laughing to even notice it. Every now and again, I'd turn to look behind me and saw Yami smiling right back at me.

Not long after, the three of us had ran up the driveway of Ryou's house, the sound of obscene techno music ringing in the air. The bass vibrated the ground out feet, even though the speakers were positioned inside the house. I wondered if any neighbors had the nerve to call the police about exessive noise. The bright atmosphere around the house seemed even brighter up close. I figured that everyone had to be in the backyard, and considering I could hear Bakura and Marik's loud voices from around the side of the house it wasn't hard to guess. I stood, catching my breath, and taking the scenery in. The air didn't feel cold anymore, and it felt great.

We walked toward the front door, Ryou leading myself and Yami. When he turned the doorknob, he paused and turned to look at me. I gave him a questioning look and, as a reply, he pointed frantically toward Yami. Suddenly, I understood immediately. This was a perfect moment to be alone with Yami, a perfect moment to tell him my feelings for him. And Ryou knew it, too. I nodded to him, and Yami stared at the two of us with a questioning look. Ryou and I ignored his confusion, busy having a conversation without words. He then gave me a quick 'good luck!' smile before entering the house and completely shutting the door, leaving me and Yami alone on the front porch.

"Yuugi, what's going on here?" he asked, fully turning to face me. I copied his movements and stared up at his deep crimson orbs. They were the same eyes I always used to get lost in before; now, I can float through it without a worry in the world. Carefully, I brushed my the back of my hand against Yami's jacket sleeve, trying to find the arm underneath.

Blushing lightly and heart palpitating, I said to him in a voice barely above a whisper, "There's something I've been needing to tell you. I... I've been waiting two whole months for this one moment, and I would like you to listen to what I have to say." I glanced unsurely at the wooden planks that layed parallel to each other, all helping to create the porch in the front of the house. I was really going to tell Yami, wasn't I?

"Yes, Yuugi?" Yami said, trying to snap me out of my sudden silence. Though, his voice held no signs of impatience or anger; he still maintained a soft smile and a smooth, calming voice. I should be relieved that Yami was so understanding. I was, actually, even more nervous than before. And I can't understand why either. Maybe it's just the way his voice hit my eardrum and made my heart race. All I can do right now is take a deep breath and hope for the best.

I shifted my eyes upward, looking at Yami staring down at me. "Promise you won't hate me."

My statement caught Yami off-guard. "W-what?"

Suddenly, I stepped forward, closer to Yami, grabbed both of his hands, and stared hard into his eyes. "Promise you won't hate me! You have to promise you aren't going to hate me!"

Yami blinked, probably unsure of what to say. My gaze never moved or shifted, even slightly, from him. I seemed so sure about what I was doing, but on the inside, I was freaking out. What if he really did end up hating me? As much as I could try to, I could never read Yami's mind. Life would be so much easier if I just knew Yami's feelings for me. But I don't. Now, I'm going to tell him and find out for myself. It's a deadly game of Russian Roulette, and I'm ready to take a risk. Though, I still don't know what I am supposed to think. Yami's slience isn't helping me much either. Then, something surprised me. Yami pulled me closer to him, my nose barely pressed against the fabric of his shirt. I inhaled through my nose slowly, taking a whiff of Yami's scent. He was undescribable in words.

"Yuugi, I'm not going to hate you. Don't ever think I will," he said lowly. I didn't look at Yami. I closed my eyes and leaned my head against his chest.

"Yami, I-"

"Look at me and tell me," he commanded, lifting my chin and directing my sight to where I was gazing into his eyes. I stared at him with wide eyes. I blinked slowly and took one small step back.

I took a deep breath. Here I go. I'm going to tell him. No turning back anymore. "Yami," I whispered, "I... I-"

"Oh my god, dude, Yami!" a voice suddenly said behind us. I jumped, shrieking slightly. Yami and I both turned to see a male with a single dice earing hanging from his left ear, tight black jeans, and jet black hair climbing over the wooden railing surrounding the sides of the house. Immediately, I recognized him as Otogi, another of Yami's long list of friends. I met him once before, about two or three weeks ago. Honestley though, even if he's the main attraction of anywhere he goes (not just parties. I mean _anywhere_.), he's a bit of a buzzkill. Or at least he is right now. "Yami, like, what're you doing out here? Party's in the backyard!" He walked over to us and stood off to the side of Yami.

Yami hesitated for a moment. "Actually, uh, Yuugi was trying to tell me something."

Otogi raised an eyebrow. "Yuugi?" He looked down and saw me, arms crossed and pouting from unsuccession. His eyes lit up. "Dude, Yuugi! I didn't see you down there! You're, like, so short! How're you?" Otogi put a hand curled into a fist out in front of him, gestering a knuckle-touch. For a minute, I was stubborn. Then, I uncrossed an arm, loosely pulled my hand into a ball, and weakly tapped Otogi's knuckles before recrossing my arm and stood akwardly.

"Um, fine?" I answered, unsure of what to say. Other than what I want to say. Otogi seemed satisfied with my answer anyway.

"That's awesome," he commented. Otogi turned back to Yami. "So, yeah, come on. Aren't you here to, like, party? I mean, really, dude."

Did I mention that Otogi was a walking stereotype?

Yami tried to reason with Otogi. "I'll be there in a minute-"

"Come on! Let's go while it's still hot back there!" he interrupted. Yami sighed loudly, getting a bit tired of Otogi's company. And quite seriously, so was I. I was right in the middle of confession, and Otogi shows up? I mean, really.

"No," Yami said, "We will be there in a minute." He was growing impatient with Otogi. Though, Otogi didn't even notice this. I wanted to say that it was all the drugs' fault, but Otogi usually acts like this. He's actually a smart person and an awesome dice player. Is this one of his more obvious traits? The answer should be screaming to be heard right now.

"Aw, come on, Yami. You guys can talk later! I mean, it's not like you're confession your love or nothin', right?"

Oh, the irony.

"Otogi-" Yami tried to say. Before he could finish, Otogi grabbed Yami's and my arm and dragged us through the front door, through the house, and into the backyard. He ignored our constant complaints and protests until we reached the destination. He walked us out of the backdoor and threw up forward, Yami and I stumbling along the ground before regaining our balance, stepping into the new environment. Looking around, not only was it Ryou and Bakura and the other two there, but also Jounochi, Honda, and Anzu. Plus Otogi. In the middle of the backyard, there was a huge pit with a large fire built six or seven feet high. Bakura and Marik were standing around it as close as they could get to it, no shirt or shoes might I add, throwing dead leaves and sticks in front of them into the flames. Malik sat a few meters away from them in the grass, watching boredly and drinking something unknown from a red plastic cup with a green blanket draped over his shoulders and around the rest of his body. Ryou was talking to Anzu about something off to the side of everyone, completely ignoring the two psyco pyromaniacs. Jou and Honda were mixing bottles of soda together and creating a dangerous conbination of carbonated drinks. The music poured through the open window, drowning out small-talk conversations. The fire in the center of everything made the air feel warmer so it didn't feel like it was below zero. Now I really did have a sight to take in. This was seriously amazing! I loved all of it!

Otogi ran over to where Jou and Honda were and decided to join those two while Yami and myself stood around, looking at the yard (and occasionally at each other) and trying to find something to do. Ryou looked over and spotted us, running toward me. At first, I didn't notice. I finally did notice, however, when he yanked at my arm and pulled me away from Yami. Before I had a chance to yell, Ryou hid us behind a bush and covered my mouth. I tried to protest as loud as I could, but I soon calmed myself, knowing that would get me nowhere.

Ryou let go of me, but dragged me to the side of the house. He asked excitedly, "So, how'd things with Yami go? Does he love you back? Are you guys an official couple? Are-"

"Shut up!" I yelled. Ryou appeared surprised, but was quickly able to regain composure. I sighed. "Look, I didn't tell Yami." He looked disappointed as I said this, but what was I supposed to do? Lie and say everything went perfect and he should be expecting a son from me in about nine months? Yeah, creepy, but what does Ryou want to hear?!

He asked sadly, "Why didn't you tell him? I thought you had finally gotten enough courage to tell him. What happened?"

"I did get enough courage! I was about to tell him! I was seriously going to tell him!" Before Ryou could ask me anything else, I added, "Otogi came out of nowhere and dragged us back here! I was this close to telling him."

Instead of looking understandable, Ryou gained a look of confussion. "...Otogi interrupted you guys?"

"Yeah, why?" What? Was there a huge problem there? Did he not know Otogi was here? Or was he not allowed here?

Hesitantly, he said, "I was able to get Otogi and Jou and all of them to stay in the backyard until you guys came back. And Otogi was in the front yard to pull you out here before you could say anything?"

Now I was more confused. "Yeah, Otogi did... Wait, you didn't tell everyone that I was going to tell Yami that I loved him, did you?"

Ryou gasped. "No! I didn't tell everyone that! Plus, I didn't tell Kura or Marik. Just everyone else."

I thought for a minute. "Where were they when you told everyone else not to go in the front yard?"

"Well," Ryou said, putting a finger to his bottom lip and looking up at the sky, "I turned the music down just enough for everyone in a group to hear me. Then, I got everyone, besides Marik and Kura, to get in a semi-circle around me, and I told them not to go in the front yard or the house until you and Yami came back."

"Alright, how loud were you talking?" Slowly, I was making sence of all of this.

"Normal voice volume."

"And where was Bakura and Marik?"

"They had their back to us and were around the fire, and I think they were slowly stepping... toward.... us...." Ryou trailed off. "Yuugi, I think they heard me."

I gave him a look. "You think?"

Ryou leaned closer to me, trying to get into a lower voice while still allowing me to hear him. "You think Malik has anything to do with this?"

I gasped. "He might actually! Hold on, let me go get him!" Before Ryou could say anything else to me, I ran from the side of the house and charged toward Malik. As I closer approached him, Malik turned and saw me. He raised a hand to wave and greet me, but I took that hand and dragged him through the grass back to where Ryou currently was. Halfway back, I ended up walking past Yami. He gave me a strange look. I smiled, waved, and continued dragging Malik away. I made it back to Ryou safely, and I dropped Malik again. He quickly stood up, just a bit infuriated.

"What the hell did you do that for, Yuugi?! If you wanted me to come over here, you could have just said so!" Malik shouted. He then turned his head to look behind him, myself guessing that he was looking at his pants. "And you got grass stains on my new pants, damn it!"

I crossed my arms. "Sorry, but it's an emergency."

Ryou then said quickly, "Kura and Marik told Otogi to interrupt Yuugi and Yami when he was trying to confess his love and we want to know if you had anything to do with it!"

Malik blinked. "That's what you wanted?" He then got an angry look. "I told Marik and Bakura it wasn't worth it and not to do it! And they did it anyway?! I am going to kick their a-"

"Okay, okay, I get it," I said. "Do you know why they didn't want me telling Yami?" Let's see if I can prove my theory right with some information from Malik.

"Yes, I think I do!" he said. Me and Ryou leaned closer to him, ready to listen to what he had to say. "I think I heard Bakura and Marik talking about how they didn't want you and Yami to be together yet, or else this plan they had for the party later wouldn't work."

On cue, Ryou and I raised our right eyebrow, tilting our head sideways in utter confusion. "What plan?" we said simultaniously. We looked at each other suddenly, wondering if we just copied each other's movements exactly. Shrugging it off, we stared back at Malik.

Malik shrugged. "I'm not sure. I didn't hear that much. Maybe we should keep an eye on those two and see what they're going to do," he suggested. Ryou and I agreed immediately and all walked away from our spot behind the house. Upon turning the corner, I ran into Yami, falling backwards onto the grass. I looked up at him and blushed darkly. I could feel my heart beating against my ribcage, desperatly trying to escape. Yami laughed an held a hand out to me.

"Need help, Yuugi?" he asked, caringly. I put my shaky hand into his, clasping it tightly as he pulled me to my feet. My balance swayed from forward to backward, but I soon brought it back to the center. I smiled gratefully at Yami, thanking him without any words. Then, I realized that he was around the corner from where I was talking. Paniking, I looked around the backyard, chewing a fingernail.

"How long have you been standing there, Yami?" I asked nervously, glancing at Yami slightly. He shook his head, laughing. Yami placed a hand on the top of my head, and I attempted to look at the hand placed on my skull. My blush only deepened.

Yami answered, "Don't worry, Yuugi." That didn't quite answer my question, but I forgot about it shortly after. The effect Yami had on me made me constantly forget what I was about to do or say, or help me forget a past memory that had me upset, and somethings just random things in general. I'm not saying it's a bad thing. Actually, I think it's a great thing. Because no one in my life so far has had the power to do that.

It must have been at least fourty-five minutes later since I had arrived, and already so much stuff has happened. For one, Malik got me to try a 'suicide drink'; it was every drink and soda avalible combined into one drink. I had to say that it was extremely delicious. I didn't think it would taste as good as it did. Another thing that happened was Jou, Honda, Otogi, and even Yami got bored enough to sit in the corner of the yard and play 'Duck-Duck-Goose'. What went wrong? Well, Jou was running from Honda and he accidently ran into Bakura when he was trying to pour a drink. And the soda spilled all over the place. Mind you, it was a cold drink, it was about thirty degrees outside, and he had no shirt on. So, in turn, Bakura ended up chasing Jounochi down until Jou accidently ran into a tree. And Bakura dumped the same bottle of soda he was pouring before onto Jou's head. His hair is still drying, by the way. But, the last thing, I had tried to confess my love to Yami again. Twice.

The first time was a very small attempt. It was right about after Ryou, Malik, and my conversation. After running into Yami, I decided that it doesn't matter if anyone heard me tell him. Though, I suddenly felt dizzy and I couldn't think straight. And nervous. Don't forget nervous. I still made an attempt to tell Yami. The only problem was that I said it too quietly and he couldn't hear me. I told him I'd tell him later and went off to get something to drink.

The second time was, surprisingly, almost completely successful! I decided to go inside the house for a little while, since it was freezing outside and I was not going to get near Bakura and Marik with a very large fire that close (they could throw me in!). The backdoor leads into the kitchen, and when I walked in, I saw Yami leaning against the kitchen counter studying his fingernails. The speakers were pointed directly out of the window and were literally sticking out of it, so it was surprisingly quieter in the house. Yami and I talked for a little bit, and I decided to tell him my feelings and get it over with. I was _so close _to telling him. I was right in the middle of the word 'love' before Marik walked inside and announced he needed to get some more matches. After he left, I tried telling him again. This time, Bakura interrupted and decided to say no one was allowed inside the house unless it was an important reason. I wanted to yell right in Bakura's face that it was a very important reason and he was more of a buzzkill than Otogi was. But I didn't. Second attempt was also, sadly, a failure.

Now, everything was finally dying down a bit. Jou, Honda, and Otogi were sitting at one of the small tables in the corner of the yard, playing some sort of card/dice game. And Jou was getting very frustrated with the game. Maybe Otogi was winning? Anzu was boredly leaning against the wall next to the speaker, occasionally lifting a hand and picking off a chip of nail polish from a random fingernail. Malik, Ryou, and I were sitting in the grass with a large blue blanket wrapped around all of our shoulders, watching Bakura and Marik try to convince Yami to take his shirt off and join them. Personally, I thought it was hilarious. Numerous times, Yami refused Bakura's offers to join the two. That resulted in Marik coming up with some new insult to call Yami. And Bakura attempted again, starting the cycle over again. Finally, Bakura and Marik were able to tackle Yami to the ground and peeled his shirt off themselves. And threw it into the fire so Yami couldn't get it. I knew I should have been blushing like crazy because I get to see Yami without a shirt on, but the whole situation was way too funny! Malik and Ryou thought it was hilarious as well, because all three of us were holding our sides and almost crying from laughing so hard. I could have sworn that Yami looked over at us and half-pouted-half-glared. I knew he was irritated, but sadly, it was the best thing I have ever seen. Next step for Bakura and Marik was to get Yami to throw something into the fire. Boredly, Yami picked up a blade of grass and tossed it in the flames. They weren't impressed, but they knew that was all they'd get out of Yami. But it was a good show overall, so I wasn't disappointed.

After Yami had stormed off to his house to get a new shirt (since his was 'eaten by the souls you summond from Hell to ruin my perfectly good day'.), the three of us off to the side finally departed from our spot on the grass and wandered in different directions. I didn't know where I was going to go to, though. I was just ghosting around in different locations, no specific direction. While I wasn't paying attention, I ran into someone for a second time today. Suspecting to see Yami, I looked up to see which person I had bumped into. There was a huge difference in what I expected. It wasn't just the fact that it was a different face; another difference was just a bit lower than that... I immediately blocked that thought from my mind. I took a huge step back and nodded politely to Anzu, sort of as an apologetic gester on my part.

"Hi, Anzu!" I said, trying to ingore said earlier event. "I haven't talk to you in a while, have I?" I really haven't. I don't remember the last time I did talk to Anzu! Oh well, might as well talk to her now while I'm still over here.

She immediately recognized me and smiled happily. "Hi, Yuugi! I'm glad I ran into you here, because there's been something I've been wondering for a while."

I wasn't worried about what she had to say. I mean, there was no way she was going to ask me out; I don't talk to her enough for her to even consider that. "Sure, what is it?"

Hesitantly, Anzu said, "It's about Yami."

Did I say I wasn't worried? "O-oh. Okay, sure." Oh god, this better not turn out like one of those stupid fights like in those movies where the two girls fight over one guy and it ends up a violent catfight until they were both composed of bloody noses and black eyes round as saucers.

She thought for a minute. "I'm not sure how to say this and not embarrass you... Actually, I kinda wanted to know if you liked Yami."

Why did she want to know that exactly? "W-what? W-w-why do you ask that? I-I don't know..." I stammered. A blush crossed the top of my nose and spread until it was under my eyes. I rocked back and forth on my heels, biting a fingernail. Great. Now I'm just making it obvious.

Anzu excitedly clapped her hands together and gasped as if she saw something cute. "I knew it! You _do _like Yami!" she exclaimed happily. Not the reaction I was expecting, but the best reaction I could imagine. Good to know she won't want to rip my head off after I confess my love to Yami and end up kissing him wildly without knowing everyone is watching. Okay, I'm getting way to carried away. Anzu continued, "That's really all I wanted to know, but you're acting so cute about it, so I want you to explain it a bit more!"

Oh great. Me and my adorable blushing causes way too many problems. "E-explain what?"

"You know," she said, "like, when you started liking him, why you like him, stuff like that."

Why I like Yami? That's what I've been trying to figure out the whole time I knew I liked him! And I still am totally unsure! And when I started liking him? It's too difficult to explain! I've liked him since _before_ I met him. I can't even explain it. I don't get that either myself. What to tell Anzu then....

I ignored Anzu's request and asked a request of my own. "Please tell me about Yami."

"Eh?" she questioned. "What do you want me to tell you?"

"You talk to him a lot, right? What are some of the things he tells you about me?" I might as well start with something. I feel like I'm back to Square One with trying to get to know Yami again. But this is for my own good.

Anzu was silent. "Well, actually, he tells me a lot about you. He's told me so many stories about you two and the cute things you do around him. Like how you look like a little child while you sleep, and how cute you are when you blush. He's also told me about how you space out and not notice anything that goes on, and he wishes he could just know what you are daydreaming of. And don't tell Yami I told you this, but he also purposly tries to get you to blush, because he said you're cutest when you're smiling with a blush across your face. That's why he tickles you out of nowhere without telling you."

It was my turn to be silent. I turned to look at the ground. Yami really thought that about me? All of that? I didn't believe it. I couldn't believe it. Though, I believe Anzu anyway. She's known Yami a lot longer than I have, and I wouldn't blame Yami for telling her all of those things. Plus, Anzu doesn't seem like the type to lie about things like this. I did trust her, so I did.

I whispered, "He really said all of that?"

"I promise, Yuugi," she reassured me. "And a little something to boost that self-esteem of yours, Yami _does_ like you."

I immediately looked up at Anzu with wide, unbelieving eyes. "Y-Yami likes me?"

She nodded, a soft smile displaying on her thin, feminine face. "Yami likes you. He never has actually told me that he likes you, but I've known him since the seventh grade. Yami had never acted this way to another person before. I mean, after me and him became friends, I was pretty obvious about my own little crush on him too." Then, quickly, she added, "I'm over my crush on Yami, don't worry." She continued. "You act almost the same as I did, except a bit more cute obviously, and look at how Yami is now. I'm actually happy he found a person that cares for him as much as you do. I have to thank you deeply for that."

Yami likes me? He really does? "Does that mean I'd have nothing to worry about if I told him that I loved him-" I covered my mouth. I meant to say 'like', not 'love'. It was too late anyway. Anzu's face lit up bright and she squealed excitedly.

"Ooooh, you didn't say that you _loved_ him!" Anzu sighed, putting a palm under her chin. "This completely changes everything. You have to tell Yami as soon as he comes back. Imagine what he would say to that!"

I wish I could imagine it. The last three times I tried to see what he would say, I was interrupted most of the time. All Anzu has to do is tie up every distraction and lock me and Yami in a room where no one could come in if they tried. Then I'd have an easy time confessing.

I thought. "I don't know... Every other time I tried, I wasn't able to," I said sadly.

"_Every other time_?" she repeated. "You've already tried? How many times?" Shyly, I held up three fingers. Anzu gasped. "Three times?! You've tried to tell Yami three times already?! Oh my gosh, you definately have to tell him now! In fact," she said, suddenly moving behind me and pushing me toward the corner of the house, "go to Yami's house right now and tell him. Don't wait for him." She released me and waved enthusiastically after me. "Hope everything goes well!" I looked over my shoulder and waved back. Anzu gave me a thumbs up and mouthed, 'Go for it!' I smiled and was about to the corner, ready to break into a run to Yami's house nextdoor. Just as I turned the corner, I jumped when I almost ran into Yami, who was walking back already and was about to turn the corner as well. Nervously, I looked up at him and waved my fingers at him.

"Um, hi," I said lamely. There were so many better things I could have said, but that was what I came up with first. Yami smiled and waved back.

"Hello, Yuugi," he replied. A second introduction is what I need. I'd like to start today over and tell Yami about my feelings as soon as I met face-to-face with him. Today would be so much easier if that happened instead. Maybe I can start today over again right now. I've got the greeting done. This is going to be easy! Now all that's left is to tell him. On second thought, maybe this will be harder than I thought.

I decided that first, I would just create a small conversation first, just to put off telling Yami for a few minutes. Besides, I've got all night, right? "So, uh, Christmas is in two weeks, isn't it?" What a stupid topic to bring up out of the blue! What was I thinking?

"Yup," he replied. "I can't wait for it. A week ago, the days were flying by so quickly, now they're so slow. I don't want to wait for Christmas anymore. You get what I mean, right?" I blinked. Maybe that wasn't so stupid to bring up. Finally something I can talk about with him where I don't care if I get interrupted in the middle of a sentence!

I nodded. "Yeah, I know what you mean. Maybe it knows that we want Christmas to hurry up and get here, so it's trying to be slow and make up want it to hurry up even more," I commented.

Yami sighed loudly. "Finally someone gets my point!"

I smiled. I liked talking to Yami, even about small stuff like this. He makes me laugh. He makes me smile. He's everything and more to me. Yeah, yeah, that sounds extremely silly, but I really think this. I wouldn't trade him for anything. I wouldn't let him go for anything. He is the sun, and I'm the moon. Okay, stupid analogy time over. Back to the time plane we go.

I heard a noise behind me, so I turned to look at who had caused it. It was Anzu, Ryou, and Malik, leaning out of the doorframe of the backdoor and giving me a thumbs up. Everyone in the backyard was now in the house, and I knew they caused it. I smiled even wider, giving them a thumbs up back. Upon turning back around, Yami stared at me with a confused smile.

"What was that about?" he asked, laughing a little. I shook my head. I wanted to keep him confused like this. The reaction would be better. Yami pouted fakely. "You won't tell me?" I shook my head again.

"No," I said, "I _am_ going to tell you." Oh, I was going to tell him alright. I finally have an oppertunity, and no one was going to interrupt me either. This is what I've been waiting for. This is what I've been waiting for since two months ago. I could never thank Ryou and Malik and Anzu enough for this. They played a part in this moment as well, so I'll have to thank them after this goes well.

Yami exhaled. "Ah, you are going to tell me? First, let me ask you a question," he requested. "Are you going to tell me what you said you couldn't tell me then?"

Now, I'm just plain confused. When was 'then'? "What do you mean, Yami?" I asked.

He took a deep breath, the complete inverse of his earlier action. "Do you remember that day when you met Malik? When he took you out of school?" I nodded, starting to understand what he meant but not quite all the way. Yami continued, "And do you remember when I asked you what you two had talked about, and you said you couldn't tell me then, but you promised that you would tell me later? Does what you have to tell me now have to do with that?" My mind kicked itself awake, and I knew exactly what he was talking about. I remember. That was when Malik helped me understand a bit more about why I liked Yami. Yes, I remember now.

Hesitantly, I nodded shyly. "Yeah... that is exactly what I want to tell you." Well, I'm not going to be able to turn back at this point. Go on, Yuugi! Get it out of your system! Let Yami know your feelings! Go on! You can do it! I was mentally cheering myself on, reenacting what Anzu, Ryou, and Malik are most likely thinking as they spy on Yami and me from the window. Wait, were they looking out the window at us? Yup, they were, I thought as I turned to look, seeing the three encouraging me with their actions through the glass. The air was so cold that I didn't know for certain if I was blushing or not.

Yami smiled warmly, instantly sending a feeling of comfort through my chest. Not to mention, a slight feeling of warmth shooting to my cheeks. "It is?" he asked me, knowing the answer already. "Thank you for keeping your promise."

Quit stalling me, Yami! I'm trying to get what I have to say out as fast as I can without chickening out, but you aren't helping me much. Stuttering, I said, "Y-you're welcome." I wasn't going to be able to do this. I already knew it. I didn't need to feel my pulse to know my heart rate was going a mile a minute. I gulped silently, hoping I don't give up on my goal.

There was a long pause before Yami chuckled and asked, "You _are_ going to tell me soon, right?"

I forgot that Yami was even there! I was so lost in my thoughts, them ranging from encouragement to decouragement. I was so lost that I didn't know what I was going to do anymore! "O-oh, yeah..." I took a short moment to look behind me at the window and saw Malik, Anzu, and Ryou still standing there, gestering me to get on with what I needed to say. I looked back at Yami and said, "Can I tell you now?"

"That's what I would hope," he answered. I looked to the ground for a moment, then redirected my sight to where it was originally. I was going to tell him. I was going to tell him now. Nothing was going to hold me back any longer.

"Yami, this is something that I don't quite know the whole reason for, but I know that the feeling exists plainly. I don't know how long I've felt this, but that doesn't matter to me right now. Right now, I just want to get this across to you before it's to where I won't be able to tell you." I paused. Here goes nothing. "Yami...." As I stared at Yami, I think what I haven't said yet was sinking into his brain, and he understood what I was going to say. He didn't say anything though; Yami waited patiently for me to finish at my own pace. "Yami, I..." Why can't I say it? It's three little words! Okay, four if you count his name. But why are those words so hard to say? Please, just say it! Say it now and get this over with and you can sleep with a clear concious! "I... I l-lo-"

Why life? Why are you so cruel to me? Right before I could say anything else, what a surprise, Bakura and Marik walked around the house, making it clear they didn't show up coincidentally. They must have left through the front door, because the three looking out the window had faces of surprise and anger at themselves for not hearing them or keeping an eye on them. I sighed, agitated and annoyed.

Bakura said bluntly, "Hello, we're here to piss you the fuck off. How are you this fine evening?" The bittersweet tone in his voice was enough to make me sick inside. I knew they didn't want me to tell Yami. I knew they had to be planning something else. Whether I knew or not, it was my turn to want to rip their heads from their shoulders and use the skulls to bash the rest of their body. Gruesome, yes. The truth, yes.

Marik added, "We were interrupting something, weren't we? Is there anyway we can make this moment worse than it already is? Or is there enough damage?" Now Marik is just rubbing it in that they clearly shattered the atmosphere. Now not only do I want to beat them with their own skulls, but now I also want to tear off their arms and legs and stuff them in their ribcages. Then take the skull and shove that into their ribcage as well. It's not usual for me to think these sort of things, but I can't help it. I want to kill them so badly right now!

For any concerned people out there, no, I will not actually kill them. But I will fantasize about their horrible murder and love it.

I'm sure they all expected me to stay quiet and keep to myself, but I decided to surprise them all. I snapped toward the two and took a dangerous step toward them. "What is wrong with you two?! Do you not understand I am trying to tell Yami something and I don't want anyone around when I tell him? Why the hell do you not want me to tell, huh? Tell me the reason why it is so important that Yami doesn't know!" I took another step, and Bakura and Marik even took a small step backward. My voice suddenly went from infuriated to slightly murderous. "You guys stopped me from telling Yami for the last time. You're are lucky I'm not going to murder you and bury you in the wall of my basement. Just go back in the house and stay in there. I don't want you out here anymore."

I knew at least Yami was surprised. I was even surprised at myself. I never knew I was so dark. Bakura seemed slightly phazed, but Marik held an unimpressed smirk. "And what if we don't?" he asked daringly. That was a mistake. Just that one question alone was enough to send me flying forward toward Marik, about ready to strangle him. I felt two hands on each shoulder, pulling me back harshly and keeping me from unveiling my anger. I did a short glance at each side of me to see who was holding me back. Yami was occupying one shoulder, Malik with the other. I struggled to get out of their grasp, but Ryou held me from around my neck with an arm, careful not to harm me. After a few more seconds of attempting to free myself, I gave up and let myself fall to my knees, holding the ground and locking my arms so I wouldn't fall forward. Ryou's arm slipped from grasp as I fell, and Malik let go of my shoulder and arm to let me fall. But Yami sunk to the ground with me, putting an arm completely around the back of my shoulder and held me protectively, the other hand placed on my arm closest to him. I was grateful that Yami was so caring, but I was too wrapped in my emotions to thank him like I should have. Marik clicked his tounge in amusment.

"How touching," he mocked. "It's just too bad that you are too scared to even throw a punch at me." Bakura was silent, but he held a smirk of his own. I let my anger wash over me again, and I lurched forward at Marik again, this time actually having murder in mind. Yami reached out and gripped my wrist, jerking me back. I pulled my hand from his grasp and ran toward Marik again. It took Yami, Ryou, Malik, Anzu, and even Bakura to pull me back and hold me down so I couldn't harm my victim. Marik looked unimpressed at my attempt. "Hormones suck don't they?" he sneered. I attempted to break free again, but no avail.

Suddenly, Jou, Honda, and Otogi all left the house to see what had been going on outside. They walked quickly toward us in amazement. I didn't look at them, even though I knew of their presence. I had myself a pretty little plan in mind.

All three gasped, then Honda asked, "Woah, what was going on out here that we missed?"

Jou added, "What did Yuugi do?" All Otogi could do was stare in amazement.

Everyone, excluding me, looked over at the trio, completely forgetting about me for a moment. I took that to my advantage and slipped from their grasp and charged toward Marik again. It all happened in a flash; one moment, there was no hope of me getting out of the five people's hold on me, the next moment I'm charging at Marik and throwing him to the ground. Marik couldn't even comprehend what was going on when it happened! Finally, the people holding me down noticed I was gone and already attempting to maul Marik. Everyone quickly snapped into gear again and rushed forward to get me away from Marik. Even the trio that had arrived not too long ago ran forward to help the other five. Now eight people were pulling me away from the taller of the platinum blondes. Despite my protests, no one let me out of their grasp. Taken by surprise still, Marik shakily stood up. Without a word, he motioned to Bakura to follow him and left. Bakura let go of me and quickly caught up to Marik, disappearing around the corner of the house. After a few seconds, everyone let go of me and crowded around me and started their interrogation.

Things like, "What were you thinking?", "Why would you do that?", "You scared us all!", "That is so unlike you, Yuugi!", and "What if you really did kill him?" were shot at me at once. I ignored them all. Yami was the only not firing questions at me. I glanced at him, and he gave me a slightly disappointed look. Though, he had a gleam of forgiveness and tenderness in his eye. And that alone gave me hope.

Eventually, everyone dispersed. It was only me and Yami outside again. I was still sitting in the same spot everyone dragged me to after pulling me off of Marik. Yami was sitting right next to me, holding my shoulder with one hand. We didn't speak. The atmosphere was tence enough as it was, even after the long period of time that the event from earlier occured. I didn't need to speak. Yami didn't need to speak either. We left the silence be and enjoyed it while it lasted. Since I could see the front yard from where I was sitting, I noticed that everybody had left, but I didn't address it. I also noticed but didn't bring up that the lights in Ryou's house were out and everyone must have gone to bed. That made me wonder what time it had been. Though, instead of killing a perfect moment with a question, I stayed silent and lost myself in my thoughts. Yami shifted his hand around the back of my neck and held my other shoulder, pulling me closer to him in the process. I didn't say anything of it. I didn't know what was going on around me since I was so wrapped in my thoughts. I didn't notice the cold breeze passing over the backyard, I didn't notice how my whole body went numb to the coldness, but I scarcely noticed a warm feeling brush over the back of my right hand. Yami had set his free hand on my hand. I responded to the action by letting my fingers wrap around his hand. Though I hadn't been looking at Yami, I had a feeling he was staring at me. I gazed at the hand that was holding mine. Yami was really next to me? I'm not dreaming? With Yami. That's where I belong.

Yami whispered to me, afraid that he might have accidently woken me up, "Yuugi, let's get out of the cold, okay?" His expression was soft, and his voice was soothing. I turned to look at him, and nodded. When I snapped back to reality, I realized how cold it actually was and shivered violently. Yami held me closer in an act to keep me warm. I leaned against his shoulder and forgot what he had said moments ago. He shook me gently. "Yuugi, come on," Yami repeated. Reluctantly, I pressed my hands against the ground and pushed myself up to stand me up on my feet. Yami copied my action, but still held me close to him. As we walked back next door to Yami's house, I spaced out again. I forgot I was walking, and I forgot where I was going. All I knew at the moment was that Yami was with me, holding me close to his side. I closed my eyes. This was a moment that I wished would last forever.

I felt a sudden tempurature change. Instead of a freezing cold breeze, I felt warm, still air. I reopened my eyes and was flooded by an artifical light. I squinted my eyes and blinked a few times before I was untimately used to the light. I glanced around and I noticed I wasn't outside anymore; instead, I was in Yami's living room. Nothing changed since I was here last. It was all recognizable. I looked up at Yami and saw he wasn't at my side anymore. Confused, I turned back to the front and was slightly frightened to see Yami right in front of me. I took a small step backward, trying to get a little space between us. I said, "Hey, Y-Yami, I'm tired, so I think I should, um, get some sleep, if you don't mind..."

Yami agreed, suddenly turning to walk away, "Yeah, I don't mind. That might be a good idea after what happened earlier." He chuckled slightly after mentioning the earlier event, attempting to lighten the situation. He knew that it didn't work, and he went back to looking blank-faced. I wanted to know what was on his mind. I wondered why Yami wasn't acting like himself right now. Sighing to myself quietly, I stalked after him sleepily.

The setup for when I first slept over at Yami's house was the same as right now; the couch and table were pushed to the wall and blankets took up the floor space in their place. Two pillows were thrown randomly on a spot on the floor. I was wearing the shirt I had on under my jacket and a pair of shorts I had borrowed from Yami, said person in similar attire. I sat on the floor and stared at the wall. Like Yami, I had a lot on my mind as well. I didn't tell Yami about my feelings yet, huh? Wait, this was a perfect oppertunity to tell him! The front door and the back door were both locked, the windows were locked, and it was only Yami and myself in the house! No one could interrupt me! Perfect. I am prepared to tell him. Alright, here I go-

"Yuugi," Yami said suddenly, laying on his back while staring at the ceiling. I looked at him, giving him my attention. "What happened earlier? Why did you attack Marik? You even tryed the same thing to Bakura at one point. What came over you?"

Silently, I shifted my whole body to face him. I stared at the floor, looking for an answer. "Yami, I-"

"It had something to do with what you had to tell me, didn't it?" Yami interrupted. "You attacked Marik because he interrupted what you were trying to tell me, right?" I didn't expect him to catch on so quickly. I nodded slowly, still staring at the ground.

"Yes, it did," I replied. "Marik and Bakura didn't want me to tell you from some reason, so they tried to stop me by interrupting me. I got tired of it and Marik's comments, so I just.... I didn't know what I was thinking!" I looked back at Yami. "I'm hoping that you don't hate me for this, I really am! I... I wanted everyoen to be gone when I told you, and those two ruined it for me..."

Yami didn't say anything for a few moments. Finally, he sighed and sat up, staring me in the eye. "I'm not going to hate you. I don't know why you would think that I would hate you. Though, I am confused about what you want to tell me and why it's a big deal if someone decides to interrup."

I closed my eyes. "It _is _a big deal. It wouldn't be as... special, if someone like Marik or Bakura were around. Actually, if _anyone_ were around." I then continued my gaze into Yami's perfect red eyes. "I just didn't mean to attack Marik like I did. My emotions just got the better of me and.... I'm sorry." I could be making it too clear that I want to tell Yami my feelings, but I didn't care. At least he'd know.

"Sorry for what?" Yami asked, confused. "You have nothing to be sorry for. If anything, I should be sorry."

What? Yami didn't do anything! Why would he need to be sorry? It's my turn to be confused. I asked him, drawing my eyebrows together, "Why do you need to be sorry? You didn't do anything wrong."

"I didn't do anything wrong _yet_." His voice was thick with an emotion I've never heard from him before. I was a bit scared of what he could be talking about. Yami continued, "Yuugi, please forgive me."

"F-forgive you for what?" I questioned nervously. Hesitantly, Yami stood up, walked toward me, and sat on his knees in front of me. I watched him cautiously, afraid he might pull a knife on me. Yeah, yeah, stupid thought. He leaned toward my face, his breath tickling my face. When he paused, his nose barely brushed against mine. My cheeks heated up rapidly, and my heart sped up like it was running a marathon.

He asked me, breath hot against my lips, "You'll forgive me for this, right?" I was unsure of what his intentions were. Nonetheless, I nodded, agreeing I would forgive him for whatever act he would commit. When I did agree, though, a sudden look of guilt flashed through Yami's eyes. He hesitantly pressed a hand to my chest and carefully pushed me to my back, hovering above me and leaning in to my face. He put a hand next to my head, and the other on the other side of my body next to my hip. My breathing threatened to quicken and my face grew warmer with each heartbeat. I suddenly got a feeling of what Yami was going to do. I gasped slightly, and Yami stopped centimeters from my face. I'm sure he was debating of whether or not he should go on with what he was planning to do. And since he wasn't the type to want to hurt me, he was most likely going to back out of what he was doing. Maybe if I tell him that I would allow him to continue-

I didn't have to. Yami pressed his lips to mine before I could say anything. My eyes widened and I held my breath. Truthfully, he had caught me off guard. I froze, comprehending everything quickly. I thought, why would Yami be afraid I wouldn't forgive him for kissing me? Then, I realized that this was Yami; there had to be a deeper meaning to what he was doing. But just what? So many suggestions ran through my head, but one stood out the most. And I had a feeling that one fit the most. Before I could stop myself and change my mind, I slid my eyelids shut and responded to the kiss, reaching my arms around Yami's neck. I had no idea what I was doing anymore. Just a seconds ago, I was too shocked to even move, and now I was kissing him back with him over me and my arms snaked around his neck, actually enjoying this instead of questioning it? You know what, fine. I don't care anymore. This was supposed to be my night, and I'm supposed to be enjoying myself without any reason not to. And here I am. Enjoying myself with no reason why I shouldn't be.

This time, I caught Yami off guard when I did this. I don't think he expected me to do what I did. He tried to pull away to question my action, but I prevented him from doing so. Like I said, I was enjoying myself, and I was going to make up for earlier. At the moment, I was in control. Or, at least I though so. Yami leaned himself closer to me and brought the hand by my hip next to my shoulder, licking by bottom lip. My cheeks grew dark again, but I still parted my lips and gave Yami access to the inside of my mouth. I drew circles with my fingers around the back of Yami's neck, trying to distract myself from the fact that Yami's tounge was tickling the inside of my cheek. He then teasingly ran his tounge over the top of mine, earning a sudden, surprised moan from me. I assumed that he liked the noise, considering he continuously repeated the action that got me to make the noise in the first place. I granted Yami's wish, letting go a short moan each time he tickled a nerve within my mouth. I wrapped my arms tighter around Yami's neck, slightly bringing my head and shoulders from the floor. He pushed me back onto the floor, thus bringing himself closer to me. I tilted my face to the left, allowing me to bring him closer to me.

I could feel a hand press to the skin of my stomach and the fabric of my shirt being pushed higher on my body until it was right under my shoulder blades. Yami removed his lips from mine and moved them to my neck. My breathing picked up, and my heart was beating unnaturally quick. I pursed my lips shut, denying the moans that threatened to escape. Though, a gasp was let through when Yami bit into my neck, though careful not to break any skin. I tightened my hold of Yami's neck, still holding back any moans that wanted to be released. Yami immediately recaptured my lips, letting his tounge into my mouth without any consultance. He continued on trying to work the shirt on my body off of me, even pulling back from our kiss to get it over my head, quickly resuming after it was thrown carelessly to the side. I felt uneven, since the shirt on Yami was still occupying his chest. I removed an arm from his neck and gripped the edge of his shirt, tugging at it slightly. He had gotten the message and removed it himself within no time at all. My arms sraightened out over his shoulders, tracing circles and lines on his back. Yami's fingers were carelessly tangled in my hair, twirling it occasionally.

Suddenly, Yami untangled one hand and moved it down to the waistband of my shorts. I attempted to gasp, but it changed into a moan. That gave him the wrong message, and he tried to pull that side of my shorts down. I dug my fingernails into his back, trying to get him to quit what he was doing. He pulled away from my lips, and I opened my eyes upsetly and tried to pull him back. Yami resisted my action and stared seriously into my eyes.

"Yuugi, if you didn't want to do this, you could have just said so," Yami said, his voice still having an unknown enotion hidden within it. I pouted slightly.

I replied, "I didn't say that I didn't want to do this. I just... didn't want to go that far." The last sentence sounded more like an unauditable mumble, and Yami didn't understand what I said. Then, he completely pulled away from me and sat on my waist, a look of guilt washed over his face.

"I knew I shouldn't have done this," he sighed to himself. Seeming to forget that I was still there, Yami started into a rant that was more to himself than to me. "I just had a sudden urge to want to do this, and I have no clue what I was thinking. I must be such a horrible person. What am I ever going to do to make up for this...?"

I listened quietly and respectfully. This was a whole new side of Yami I had never seen before. It was good though. It showed how he never really has any intention on harming me, or anyone else for that matter. All he wants to do is keep constant protection over me, and if he does do something wrong or hurts me in anyway, he would immediately apologize and promise he would never do that again to me. And he always keeps that promise. Yami was a caring person, and he would always be there to protect me.

I sat myself up, pressing my body against his. I replied to his last statement in a quiet voice, though it was not a whisper. "You don't have to make up for anything. You don't have to be sorry anymore. I don't regret anything, and I forgive you, Yami." He listened to me with wide eyes. When I had finished talking, he wrapped his arms around me in an embrace. I hugged him back and pressed my ear to his chest, listening to his heartbeat. I closed my eyes and concentrated on the beating in his chest.

Yami said to me in a low whisper, "Thank you, Yuugi. For everything you just said. Thank you."

The room was silent, excluding the sounds of our steady breathing. I knew Yami didn't expect an answer from me, but I answered his statement anyway.

"You're welcome."

That night, I was able to sleep with a peaceful mind. The entire room was dark, and the curtains for the window had been closed, denying any moonlight that requested to pass through. The air had a small nip of cold to it, but it was still comfortable. Yami and I slept side by side, shirts reoccupying our bodies. We were facing away from each other, myself the only one under three blankets at once. For once, I could sleep without a thought in the world to haunt me. I didn't regret anything that happened to me today. I was happy that all of it happened. Yeah, I was tired from today, but all of those events excited me and kept me awake longer than I would have liked. Yami had already drifted to sleep, though. And I was finally starting to as well. I let my final thoughts enter my mind before my eyes slid shut.

They only reopened once I realized that I still didn't tell Yami that I loved him.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Kurisuten: -covering face with hands- That was so unworthy of a lime scene. I am so so sorry.

Kishichi: Are you kidding? That was the most graphic thing you have ever written.

Kurisuten: That wasn't even graphic, you moron.

Kishichi: -sweatdrop-

Kurisuten: Anyway, this chapter is a week late. But it had a lot to tell in it! And personally, I liked this one! It had a lot of feeling put into it. Especially with Yuugi! He went OOC and tried killing Marik! Talk about scary!

Kishichi: Originally, the whole second half of the chapter was going to be played out differently. The way Kurisuten originally planned it, Marik and Bakura were going to stall Yuugi's confession long enough to suggest a game of Seven Minutes in Heaven, then rig the game to were Yuugi and Yami went last. Therefore, they would have enough time to get Yami drunk without him knowing, so then the lime scene would end up in the closet.

Kurisuten: Due to Yuugi's "explosion", that idea could no longer fit into the chapter without making everything akward. Sadly, though, with this setup, no one knows why Bakura and Marik were trying to get Yuugi to not tell Yami. But I still like this idea a lot better. I didn't have to make anyone seem out of character and this idea was a lot more emotional. Plus, I think this will fit much nicer with the end chapter.

Kishichi: Yeah, this idea was a lot better than your other one.

Kurisuten: Yeah. QUESTION TIME!! Alright, so, here is your question! **The next chapter has the evil plot twist I've been talking about! What do you think is going to happen to Yuugi and Yami?** Review with your answers!

Kishichi: It is?! The plot twist is next?! Finally! I've been waiting for this since you first mentioned it! I can't wait!

Kurisuten: Me either! Another thing, I posted a story for Halloween! It's a Ryou/Bakura fic! Go check that out if you can! Kay kay, I'm gonna go now! Ja ne, minna-san!

Kishichi: Ja!


	16. Give Em Hell, Kid MALIK'S CHAPTER

Kurisuten: When I said that this chapter was the plot twist chapter, I sort of, well.... lied.

Kishichi: YOU LIED TO YOUR LOYAL READERS-

Kurisuten: -tapes Kishichi's mouth shut- I was doing some thinking, and I remembered that I said I would do another chapter like the chapter where it was in Ryou's point of view. So, I decided I would add some humor to the story before I break all of your hearts next chapter. So, here is a lovely chapter in Malik's POV! And it's actually relevant to the story line! So, please enjoy! Disclaimer please!

Kishichi: Mhhmmm hmmhm.

Kurisuten: Oh right. I forgot about you.

Kishichi: -sighs in relief-

Kurisuten: I'll do the disclaimer!

Kishichi: MHMMHMHM.

Kurisuten: **I do not own YuGiOh, it's characters, unoriginal ideas, or song titles used for the chapters.** Hope you like the chapter!

(Warning. The F-bomb is dropped about twenty times. You have been warned.)

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

When someone asks "How was your day?", usually you know the answer by their facial expression when they walk in the door. For example, if someone walks in the front door with a depressed trance, then gets a fake smile when they answer your question with a "It was fine", then you probably know that it was pretty bad. Or, if someone walks in the door with an extremely happy face, then answers your question with a full rundown of their day, then obviously it was pretty good. Now, I walk in the front door with a face that looks like I'm about to brutely murder someone with a rusty chainsaw. Which would not be surprising if I did. Wanna ask me how my day was, or do you get the idea?

The door slammed so hard behind me, I could have sworn I heard it sobbing right after from the brutal force. I was the last of the group to enter the house, and I made sure my presence was known. I was the only one that could have that much fury at one time, besides Yami. And Yami was outside trying to calm poor Yuugi down. And whose fault was it that Yuugi snapped and almost murdered someone? That's right! Marik and Bakura! And since Bakura was Ryou's problem, Marik should be very scared of me right now. _Very scared._ The entire house was quiet upon my entering. I could literally taste the fear radiating off of the others after I slammed the door. I gave a look to Bakura, and he knew I was asking where Marik was hiding. Bakura pointed nonchalantly to the couch, and immediately I noticed platinum blonde hair from over the back of the couch. Since I was the only other person with that hair color, I knew that it really was Marik. I stomped loudly toward him, reached out to him over the back of the couch, and violently gripped the ear closest to me.

"_What the fuck were you thinking?!_" I scremed into said ear. Cringing in pain, Marik covered his ear and glared at me. I had a look that should have said how angry I was. No, wait. Angry was a huge understatement. There was no word to describe my emotion. But go ahead and think of angry as what I'm talking about until you can come up with something a lot more descriptive.

Smugly, Marik answered, "I was thinking-"

I interrupted him. "Wrong! You weren't thinking!" Marik tried to look away from me, but I gripped the front of his shirt and whipped him around to where he was looking me in the eye, barely an inch from my face. "Do you not get what Yuugi was trying to fucking do?! Or were you just being an ass as usual!" I yelled, not caring about the other stares of fear and surprise I was getting. I even saw a short flash of fear in Marik's eyes!

In a voice almost equally as loud as mine, he answered, "Yes, I get what Yuugi was trying to do! Me and Bakura-"

"I don't fucking care about Bakura right now! I want to know what you were thinking! Not Bakura! Ryou can deal with him! I'm dealing with you! I'm not dealing with you AND Bakura! Now tell me what you were thinking before I beat some fucking sense into you!" Maybe I am over-reacting just a bit. But how else am I supposed to get my point across to him? There was no other way! He wouldn't hear me if I tried giving him a stern warning and wagged my finger at him. Which would not work with anyone unless you're a dog.

"Okay, fine! I'll tell you what I was fucking thinking!" Marik snapped, ripping himself from my grasp. "I was thinking that I'm a fucking comedian and it would be just simply _hilarious _to keep Yuugi from telling Yami anything!"

That's it. That was the last straw. Marik gone done it. I clenched one hand into a fist, then took the opposite hand and swung it at Marik, it connecting with his cheek with a loud crack sound. Everything was silent. There was no sounds of breathing. There was no sounds of moving. There was nothing. All eyes were wide with terror, and Marik was the most surprised. A very large handprint was already appearing on the side of his face, and I don't feel bad at all.

Grinding my teeth, I seethed, "You are a fucking idiot. I'm sure everyone here can agree with me. And I bet Yuugi really would kill you if he had the chance right now. Do you know why? Because you have no fucking heart or feelings for anyone but yourself. You pester and annoy the hell out of Yuugi and Yami simply for your own amusement. Hell, at least _Bakura_ knows when to stop joking around! But you don't!"

Marik's eyes were wide, and he never once blinked during my rant. He was deep in thought, letting my words sink in. He knew I was right. I knew that he knew I was right. Quieter than before, Marik said, "M-Malik-"

I interrupted him again. "No! Shut up! Give me one good reason why I should let you speak, since we'll have no idea if you're just going to mess things up even more!" It was silent for about two minutes now. Marik's cheek went from red to blue in this time. I knew I had hit him hard, but I had no clue that I would leave a bruise. Marik didn't even seem notice. He sat there, unblinking, staring me right cold in my eyes. Ryou walked to me and put a hand on my shoulder, trying to get me to calm down and take a few deep breaths to solve this in a better way. I shook him off of me, glaring dangerously. He took a step back before walking back to Bakura, nervous. I snapped back around and continued burning holes in Marik's pupils.

Finally, I gave Marik one last snarl before walking to the corner Ryou and Bakura were resided in. Marik still sat in the same position, refusing to move. The others that were in the house took this time to depart, giving me and Ryou a quick good-bye before leaving. It was, once again, just Ryou, Bakura, Marik, and I. Bakura walked over to Marik, took him by his arm, and dragged him to Marik's room, throwing him inside it. Bakura, as usual, went back to sitting in front of the television flicking through channels once again. Ryou started walking to the back door, motioning for me to follow him. I obeyed, following behind him with a dangerous motion in my walk.

Once the door shut behind me, Ryou didn't hesitate to start his own rant. "What were _you_ thinking when you were screaming at the top of your lungs at Marik?! Everyone was still in the room! I'm sure they _all_ know Yuugi's feelings for Yami! Yeah, Marik messed up, but so did you! There were way better ways you could have solved this! And when you slapped Marik? You freaking bruised his face! You yourself are turning into Marik! What were you thinking?!"

I noticed that Yuugi and Yami were no longer outside, so looks like Yuugi doesn't have a reason to be any more embarrassed and/or angry. Great. I yelled back, "I was _thinking_ that Marik needs to fucking grow up! I thought you would agree with me on this! Maybe _you're_ turning into _Bakura_."

Oh my god. I'm yelling at _Ryou_ now. I know I'm no good at holding in my emotions, but I'm yelling at _Ryou_. I don't remember yelling at him even once before. Why tonight? Why tonight everyone's emotions are cracking? First Yuugi, Ryou is starting to crack himself, now me. Who's next?

Ryou clenched his teeth. "At least I didn't hit Bakura! At least I didn't bruise his face! And at least I'm not screaming at the top of my lungs in Bakura's face because I'm undeniably pissed off at him! Because at least I can think before I act!" He took a deep breath. Ryou has never yelled at me like this. Hell, he's never yelled at anyone like this before. I know he must be confused, maybe angry at himself for letting him act like that.

I sighed. I didn't want to yell anymore. Maybe things were easier to solve by acting resonable. Much calmer, I replied, "Look, my emotions just got the better of me. I didn't mean to yell at Marik like I did, nor did I mean to hit him so hard. It... it just happened. I have no idea what came over me... I just wish I could redo that entire conversation."

I wasn't lying. I really didn't mean to hurt Marik. Well, yeah, I did mean to scream in his face. Besides, I'm used to yelling at him. But... I really didn't mean to slap Marik. I had no idea what I was doing when I did it. I really didn't. Okay, whatever, don't believe me. I'm not saying that you have to believe me. As long as I know it's the truth, then I shouldn't care.

I half-expected Ryou to hit _me_. I really wouldn't be surprised if he punched me in the face as hard as he could, all out of anger at me. But, he didn't. Instead, he held out his arms, hinting at a hug. I greatly accpeted it, hugging Ryou for what felt like forever. When we finally did let go, Ryou stared me in the eye with a soft smile.

"You should go talk to Marik," he said, no anger in his voice. I smiled back at him and nodded.

"Yeah."

o-o-o

The door swung open. Upon entering, I threw something at the person sitting at the edge of the bed inside the room. Immediately, Marik looked to see who had walked in, only to look down at the spot on the bed that the bag of ice had hit. He looked back at me in confusion. I tried to keep all negative emotions away from my actions and facial expression, but I couldn't fully do it. With a hint of danger in my tone of voice, I said, "Your cheek is swollen. Put the ice on it." Without a word, Marik obeyed my command. Surprisingly gentle, I shut the door behind me and made my way to Marik's bad, sitting at the foot of it with my legs crossed.

Marik asked harshly, "What the hell do _you_ want?"

Okay, Malik, you are in control, don't make things worse. Darkly, I said, "Look, I'm here to ask you why you did what you did to Yuugi without yelling at you this time. Now answer me: Why do you not want Yuugi to tell Yami his feelings?"

I was sure that Marik didn't know what to say, considering his sudden silence. Finally, he answered me in a voice barely about a whisper. "Me and Bakura had this plan, and we were going to suggest a game of 'seven minutes in the closet' or whatever the hell it's called. We were going to make sure Yuugi and Yami were the last two to go, then spend the time before that trying to get either one or both of them drunk off their ass without them knowing, so then they'd actually make a fucking move on each other already."

All I could do was stare at Marik with a look that couldn't even be described. I can tell you, though, that it read 'you have to be kidding me'. I wasn't going to ask if he was serious, because that was something that Marik and Bakura would do. Instead, I said, "Not every relationship has to be a fucking physical relationship. Why the hell can't you let Yuugi and Yami work their relationship as slow as they want?"

Marik crossed his arms- well, arm. "I'm not used to emotional relationships. Plus, Yami doesn't even seem like the emotional type."

Oh, come on. "How long have you known Yami? Of course he's the fucking emotional type! I've known him a few years longer than you and Bakura, but come on! How have you not known Yami was the fucking emotional type?!" Personally, I think Marik knows this and is just trying to find an excuse.

"I couldn't help it, okay? I just... I just wanted to, okay?"

I stood up from the bed and stood tall, clenching my fists. "I'm sorry. Twice."

"'Twice'?" Marik asked. "Why are you sorry twice?"

"For one thing," I started to say, "I'm sorry you are such a heartless bastard. Start thinking of others from now on. Not just yourself. And don't even try to say that you think of me, because half of the time, you don't." I turned to walk away toward the door, jerking it open.

Marik stopped me before I walked out. "Wait!" I turned to look at him. "What was the second thing?"

I shut the door again, faced Marik, and a small, caring smile crossed my face. "I'm sorry about hitting you. I didn't mean to."

Marik looked to the floor. I know he wants to apologize to me, too, but won't admit it. It's okay, though. I forgive him anyway.

I walked back out in the living room, just in time to see Bakura running back in the house from outside, a look of amusement on his face. Ryou, who was in the kitchen at the time, looked at him over his shoulder with confusion written on his face. I raised an eyebrow at him as if to ask what was wrong with him.

Panting, Bakura said, "I... just went over to Yami's house... to ask him a question, and... the curtains were open... and Yuugi and Yami were on the floor, fucking making out."

Ryou stared at him with a look that was a mix between shock and disbelief. All I could do was try to hold back the giggles that I wanted to let loose into wild laughter. Looks like Yami couldn't hold back his emotions either! Maybe the end of today wasn't so bad after all!

So, let's go back to the beginning topic. Just how was my day?

In one word...

Hectic.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Kurisuten: Alright, so, not much humor. I. Am. So. Sorry. But there IS some angst. But hey, Marik finally got what he deserves! Go Malik! And maybe this was just a bit better than that Ryou chapter I typed. Sorry that one sucked to much. XD But this was a lot better. Because there is violence! And did you notice how it sort of matches the theme of the last chapter? I don't know how to explain how, though. Sorry. XD

Okay, so, the question for this chapter! (Yes, even this chapter gets a question.) **Based off of what happened at the end of the last chapter, in three words or less, describe what Yuugi and/or Yami's emotions are. **Not really a question, but it should keep you thinking.

Reviews let Kishichi speak! Please review! Ja na, minna-san!

Kishichi: Mhhmhmhmm.


	17. Imaginary

Kurisuten: .....I'm sick. And I'm typing this. All because I love you all. And I only have three more reviews until I get 100 reviews. Anyway. Back to rambling. Ah, I liked the last chapter. It was pretty amazing. :D

Kishichi: ...She let me out of the closet. I can speak again. Thank you all, I love you. So much. You don't even know.

Kurisuten: Yeah, anyway. THIS IS THE PLOT TWIST. GET READY TO HEAR SOBS, CRIES OF DISTRESS, AND HEARTS SHATTERING. THAT'S RIGHT! THIS IS THE START OF A SERIES OF VERY SAD CHAPTERS.

Kishichi: ...This is going to get a lot of fans wanting to come after you with pitchforks and torches.

Kurisuten: Yeah. I know. And I can't say if I should be worried or not based on the ending. Because I'd be giving away the ending.

Kishichi: Don't worry, don't worry.

Kurisuten: DON'T TELL ME NOT TO WORRY! YOU HAVE NO CLUE IF I SHOULD WORRY OR NOT. Considering I don't tell you how my story turns out.

Kishichi: Which I don't understand at all! I live inside your head!

Kurisuten: Which is illogical, considering you are MY hikari, and I am YOUR yami.

Kishichi: ........You break all rules of logic anyway.

Kurisuten: ...True. Disclaimer.

Kishichi: I thought you stopped with the disclaimers because it's in every other chapter before.

Kurisuten: Why didn't you tell me that LAST CHAPTER?!

Kishichi: My mouth was taped shut!

Kurisuten: ....Riiiiiight. "Enjoy" the chapter while I argue with myself.

(Warning. Get ready to enter Flashback Hell.)

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

It has been six days since the day of the party. And though I didn't tell my feelings for Yami to said person on that day (or any other day within the five days between today and Saturday.), I got something almost as good. Okay, fine, it was better than that. I mean, which would _you_ rather have? Having the person you have feelings for finally knowing those feelings, or have that same person on top of you making out with you? Yeah, that's what I thought. That's right. Yami and I were on the floor, completely shirtless, making out with each other. And enjoying it. But then again, who wouldn't enjoy it? It's _Yami_ we're talking about.

The downside to this? I still haven't told Yami my feelings!

Yeah. It's been six days, and you think I would have told him, right? Nope. I always get close to telling him. What goes wrong? Nope, not Bakura and Marik. Actually, they've been _trying_ to get me and Yami together! I have no idea what's wrong with them lately, but I'm scared to find out. Actually, I can never get Yami at a good time. Oh, but Yuugi! What about before school when you guys are walking together? Either I'm late for school and Yami gets there before me, or he's late for school and I'm there before him. But what about at lunch, Yuugi? No one is ever around to bug you two! It's school! You are not supposed to remember things at school! Plus, it's freezing cold outside and I'm way too busy complaining about the cold to remember. Yeah, lame excuse. And don't even get me started on after school! My grandpa hasn't been feeling very well, so I've been hanging around my house doing chores and whatnot. And I refused to have Yami come over, because I don't want him to be bored with watching me to absolutely _everything_. So maybe that's my fault just a little bit. But still.

But thank god that it's finally Friday! My grandpa has been feeling better, so I can tell Yami today! Not only that, but it's the last day before two weeks of absolutely no school! Before school, me and Yami walked together. Did I tell him then? Nope. At lunch, I remembered I had to tell Yami about my feelings. Did I tell him then? Nope! It's after school now. Am I going to tell him? Yes! I am going to tell him! I'm confident that I won't mess up, and even if someone interrupts us, I'll still tell him right after the person (or people) go away! I was not going to quit until Yami knows my love for him! Yes, I can _so_ do this!

The bell rung throughout the school. The once quiet atmosphere was quickly filled with excited chatter of students. It was so difficult trying to find people in the larger than usual crowd, but it was perfectly okay. I was so wrapped in my thoughts, I didn't even noticed who I was walked by or who I occasionally bumped into. I was going to tell Yami, I was going to tell Yami... I repeated that same sentence over and over again in my mind, just to make sure I was really going to do it. I knew I was going to, but I needed to tell myself anyway. A huge smile was planted on my face while I thought this. I wasn't scared. I wasn't nervous. I wasn't... I really wasn't...

When I arrived at the street corner to wait for Yami, I saw Ryou was already there, leaning against the stop sign with a worried look on his face. I stopped walking and made a small hop forward in front of Ryou, trying to get his attention, still smiling. He looked up at me, creating the fakest smile I had ever seen from him. Confusion crossed my face, but only slightly.

"Hey, what's wrong, Ryou?" I asked, a candy-sweet tone coating my voice. Ryou quit trying to smile and sighed heavily. He put a hand on my shoulder and, without answering me or even saying anything to me, led me away from where we were standing and toward the direction we normally walk. I shook his hand off of my shoulder and drew my eyebrows together in confusion. "Ryou, what's going on? Aren't we going to wait for Yami?"

Quietly, he said, "Yami left early. Malik came and picked him up."

My face lit up again. "Oh, alright! No problem! But wait," I said, realizing what I was intentionally asking before, "what's wrong with you? You seem so..... drained. Did something happen with Bakura?" I stared at Ryou with confusion written all over my face.

Without looking at me, Ryou answered, "Bakura told me something fourth hour. I'm not sure if I can tell you or not." He sighed again, turning his head slightly to glance at me from the corner of his eye. I thought for a minute before laughing.

"Did Bakura murder someone? Is that why you seem so disappointed?" I knew Ryou. Stuff like this, he would laugh and say, 'What? No, Bakura wouldn't do that! What he did was...', then go on with what he actually did. But this time, Ryou wasn't laughing. After saying this, Ryou looked away from me again and stared at the ground.

"Yuugi, you watched the news last night, right?" he asked me, disreguarding my question. I drew my eyebrows together and nodded slowly. "Did you hear about how Seto Kaiba, that one kid in our first and second hour class and was the head of his father's huge company, and his younger brother were murdered yesterday morning?" I nodded a second time, then gasped suddenly when I realized where Ryou was going with this conversation. And the pieces fit perfectly, too. Bakura didn't go to school yesterday. There was no way Ryou could be lying about this.

"B-Bakura.... he...." I stuttered. All Ryou could do was nod slowly. "B-But... how?"

Ryou turned to me. "In fourth hour, Bakura told me that it was him that killed Seto. But he also told me something else, as well. I didn't want to tell you, but this could affect you confessing your love to Yami." I noticed something while he was speaking; Ryou didn't call Bakura 'Kura', like he usually did. Was he actually serious? How much was this going to affect when I tell Yami?

"W-What? How?" I asked him, unable to finish a complete thought. Ryou took a deep breath. I knew he didn't want to tell me. I stopped walking and gripped both of Ryou's shoulders, shaking him violently. "Come on! Tell me!"

Ryou threw my hands off of him, staring me cold in the eyes. "Bakura said that Marik helped him, and he also said that Yami did, as well! Okay?"

I couldn't speak. I couldn't move. Bakura said that Yami helped him as well? Y-Yami wouldn't do that.... Bakura had to be lying. Bakura had to have set this up. I just know it. Yami wouldn't kill anyone! He wouldn't! "R-Ryou.... He's lying... I know it... Yami wouldn't do that..." I said quietly in disbelief.

"Of course he wouldn't have! He didn't!" That made me look at Ryou in even more confusion. "Do you remember how the news said that the two were murdered at around eleven thirty yesterday morning?" I nodded. I didn't get what Ryou was talking about. "That was when Yami and you were at lunch! Don't you get it? Bakura was lying! There was no possible way that Yami could have!"

My eyes grew wide in relief. That was good. Then, I realized what Ryou said earlier. About how this would affect when I told Yami. "Wait, how does this fit in to when I tell Yami about my feelings?" I asked, continuing to walk again. This was when Ryou got unreasonably quiet. There was something he didn't want to tell me. What didn't he want to tell me? Why keep me in the dark?

Ryou said quietly, to where only himself and I could hear him, "Bakura told me that him, Marik, and Yami were going to go back to Egypt until the police stopped investigating." I didn't blink. Ryou had to be lying. I just knew he was lying! Ryou was lying! He was just joking around with me! Ryou would start laughing and saying how he got me good, and I'd laugh with him and agree how much he scared me. But Ryou wasn't doing that. I fear that he might actually be telling the truth.

"N-no..." I whispered.

"Yes, Yuugi. I'm not joking."

I shook my head, shutting my eyes tightly. "No, you have to be lying to me! You have to be!" Tears threatened to leave my eyes at that moment. My body wanted to fall to the cement and lay there until this was all over. I didn't let tears spill over, and I was able to hold my body upright. For now, anyway.

Ryou shook his head slowly. "I'm not lying, Yuugi. Marik ditched school to tell Malik everything I just told you, and he got Bakura and Yami." He then turned to me with a sad smile. "That was half an hour ago, so I'm sure they're still there. Maybe if you hurry, you can catch Yami and tell him how you feel about him. Even better, maybe you can get him to stay and tell him why Bakura and Marik wants him to leave. I'm sure he wouldn't leave willingly if he really knew what was going on, right?"

I was strong enough to hold back the tears. I was strong enough to stand. But, I wasn't strong enough to believe Ryou. I can't fully believe him. It was all too unbelieveble. Yet, for some reason, a small part of me _wanted_ to believe him. And that part of me was overpowering everything.

I took my backpack off from my shoulders and held it out to Ryou. He stared at it for a second, then looked back up at me, confused. I motioned him to take it. He still didn't get the hint. I motioned once more hoping Ryou would get it. No luck. Sighing, I threw the bag at Ryou's feet and broke into a run toward Yami's house. Ryou yelled after me, but I didn't look back. I was going to get Yami. Even if it kills me.

I pushed people out of my way that I happened to pass. I ignored the 'Don't Cross' sign across the street at the stoplights. I didn't notice the car horns being sounded as I ran in front of them. Houses flew by me in seconds. I knew I was getting closer to my destination, but I felt like I was getting further away from it the more I ran. My lungs and body were screaming at me to stop and take a breath, but I didn't want to listen. As I ran, sometimes I'd start to slow down, but I struggled to run faster. I was afraid that if I stopped, even for a second, Yami would be out of reach. That was what I didn't want to happen.

Suddenly, I had past memories run through my head. Past memories of me and Yami. So many flashbacks flooded my mind that it was hard to think. But... there was so much that happened between us. So many things that I would be afraid to lose. I've already lost to two people that were closest to me before. I don't want to lose anyone else close. There were a few memories that stuck out from them all. I let them play over and over in my head like a broken video tape.

-

_"Hey," a voice said from next to me on my right._

_My thoughts were broken from this person, and I turned my head to see who had talked to me._

_"H-huh?" Wow, good job on that first impression._

_The person, well, guy, looked somewhat similar to me. Well, the hair at least. He looked way taller than me, and he has crimson-like color eyes instead of violet. I watched as he looked over my schedual. He didn't look like he was going to bully me or something._

_"Yuugi, right? I'm Yami. Nice to meet you," he said, looking up at me. I blinked. I didn't expect this._

_"U-uh, yeah, same to you..." I mumbled. He looked at my schedual once more._

_"So, we both have first lunch, don't we? I'll look forward to that!" He smiled at me. I felt embarrassed that I didn't know what to say. Once again, he went back to checking my schedual. "So, you're a freshman? Man, it was fun being in the ninth grade. I'm in the tenth grade, so, you know."_

_"Oh." That was all I managed to say._

_"You don't talk much, do you?" he laughed. I shrugged. "Hmm, I'll get you to talk, don't worry!" What's to worry about?_

_He continued to talk to me. "Okay, how about this; at lunch, I can introduce you to my friends!" I looked up at him._

_"Aren't they all in the tenth grade, too? Won't I be the odd one out?" I said. He smiled._

_"No, actually, there are other freshmans too! I promise you'll like them."_

_I sighed. "Umm, okay."_

_His face lit up. "Great! I'll try to find you!"_

-

_Yami sighed. "You know, Yuugi?"_

_I sat up. "Yeah?"_

_"I like you, Yuugi."_

_Time seemed to stop. Did he just say..... he LIKES me? He likes ME? HE likes me? Oh. My. God. What do I say now? What do I do now? Time creeped up and hit me in the back of the head to get me back in the flow of things._

_"W-what?"_

_"I like you. You're a cool person. You are by far the best friend I've ever had."_

_Of course. There's always that catch where he means something else. I am not surprised at all._

_"O-oh, okay. T-thanks," I said, quietly._

_Yami smiled, and I smiled sheepishly back._

-

_Carefully, I sat up, the covers falling from my upper body. I pushed the remaining blankets off of my legs and slowly inched myself towards Yami. I looked down at him. He seemed to be in a deep sleep, but I couldn't be too sure. I touched him arm and shook him slightly. I whispered his name a few times to see if he would respond, each time louder than the last. I got no response. I suddenly got scared to go through with it. What if he woke up? What if he _is_ awake right now? Wait, I told myself that I would do this. I don't want to back out now. Sitting on my heels, one side of me tried to debate myself out of doing this while the other side told me that I had to do this. I could hear my heart beat in my ears. I could feel the blood pulsing in my veins. I could feel my face heat up. I made up my mind. I took a deep breath, and I was going to do it. Very slowly, my body moved on its own and my face was brought to Yami's own face. I stopped myself, an inch away from him. I could hear my concience tell me to get it over with before I gave up. I took its advice._

_"Yami," I whispered one last time before I pressed my lips to his. I stayed like this for what seemed like forever. In reality, it was only ten seconds. My face felt hot. I didn't care. In fact, I wanted Yami to wake up now. I wanted him to wake up and know what I had just did. I didn't care if he woke up. I moved myself away from him, just to see if he had been awake. The small amount of moonlight illuminating the room proved to me he wasn't. I sat and stared at him for a little longer before retreating back to my sleeping spot._

-

_"Close my eyes? What is it you're giving me?" I asked._

_"You won't find out if you don't close your eyes," Yami responded. I sighed and pressed my eyes shut._

_"Alright, Yami, I'm closing my eyes," I said. Not even three seconds later, I felt something being placed in my hand. It was light in weight, though I couldn't tell what it was. Yami removed his hand from mine._

_He said, "Alright, Yuugi, you can open your eyes." I followed what he said and reopened my eyes. I looked at what was put into my open hand, and I saw a small paper box made of a shiny gold and silver paper. I glanced back up at Yami._

_"So, this was what you wanted to give me?" I asked, taking a step toward Yami. He sighed disappointingly, and I gasped, thinking he thought that I didn't think it wasn't good enough. "I like it and everything! But I mean, why an origami box?"_

_Yami held a finger to my lips, silencing me. "Yuugi, open the box. There is something inside of it."_

_Something inside of the box? Hesitantly, I brought my other hand to the thin paper lid of the origami box made with golden paper and pulled it open. I then reached inside of it and my fingers twitched when they came in contact with something metal. I wrapped my fingers around it and pulled out the object carefully. It was thin silver chain, but something was attached to it. I pulled the object out of the box even further and, at the end of the chain, was a small charm. It was an upside down square pyramid made of a sort of solid, baked clay. There was a strange eye symbol carved on one of the sides of the charm. I held it in my hand and studied it, taking in every detail of it. I glanced back up at Yami._

_"Yami, this is really..." I struggled to find a good word to use, but there were no words to describe what I felt like. There were many different descriptive words running through my head, though none of them could possibly accurately tell the tale of what I was thinking. Instead, I said, "Why?"_

_Yami smiled. "When I got bored over the weekend, I found some old clay and made this. And I thought I'd give the end result to you." Upon hearing this, I leaned closer toward Yami in surprise._

_"You made this?" I asked in amazement. Yami nodded. I drew away from him and looked back at the gift. It was so shockingly amazing, I don't know how I could possibly put my feelings into words. "Yami, this is really beautiful," I said quietly, finishing my earlier incomplete though._

_"I'm glad you think so," he replied. I looked back at him, and I gazed into his deep crimson eyes. They held a soft emotion that seemed to calm the storm of confusion inside of my head. My breath became short. Yami stepped closer to me, reaching for the chain in my hand. I watched his movements. There was a small hook on part of the silver chain, and he detached it, holding an end of the chain in each hand. He reached to my neck and wrapped the chain around it, rehooking it in the back. I lifted a hand to touch the metal placed loosely around me. I looked back at Yami. Simply, he said, "It's a necklace. You're supposed to wear it."_

_I parted my lips to say something, but no words could possibly be said. Finally, I uttered a small, meaningful sentence. "Thank you."_

_Yami reached out to me with both hands, taking my hands in his. The origami box that held the necklace fluttered into the snow. I looked him directly into his eyes, able to study even more of those eyes of his even closer than before. With a soft, gentle smile, Yami replied to me in a smooth, caring voice._

_"You're welcome, Yuugi."_

-

All of these memories running about my head started to give me a slight headache. But I really didn't care. I didn't care if all of these memories suddenly appeared in my mind and just made the temptation to cry my heart out in the middle of the sidewalk even worse. I didn't care about any of that. I let the clip show continue to play; it was just another reason to never quit running. And I didn't.

I almost did stop running, though. There was one memory that flashed in my head for a short time, but it had to be the best out of them all. It was what happened six days ago. It was what happened with me and Yami. It was when Yami had me pinned under him, capturing my lips with his own. And it was the best memory of them all. Though, when this memory flashed through my mind, I could have sworn I felt Yami's presence in front of me. It took me a second to realize he wasn't really there, and I still had to keep running. But I didn't care if I had to run, just so long as it was to Yami.

H-Hey, wait... What am I seeing? In the distance over there? Shiny red car, tall look-alike of me... Oh my gosh, there he is! I see Yami! And the red car pulled slightly out of the driveway. Thankfully, it appears to be in park. Yami was standing tall in front of his own house on the sidewalk, staring thoughtfully into the endless sky. He doesn't see me. I made an attempt to call out his name, but I was too out of breath to say a word. I tried to speed myself and run faster, but I couldn't. I was sure trying, though. Yami was getting closer and closer to me. Soon, he was just about ten steps away. I held my arms out and yelled a breathless "Yami!" before throwing my arms around Yami's waist, trying to catch lost breath. He immediately looked down to see me burying my face in his shirt.

"Y-Yuugi, what's wrong?" Yami asked me, carefully peeling me off of him. I stared into his eyes, trying to figure out if he was really there or if I was imagining things. I could still see into those crimson orbs. I could still feel his skin. I could still hear his breathing. I could still smell that entrancing scent Yami gave off. Yami was still there. Yami wasn't gone. He was here. I wrapped my arms around him again, trying not to cry tears of happiness.

Still panting from running, I thought out loud, "Yami's really here... You aren't gone... Yami, you're here still...." What am I doing?! I'm on a thin string of time! Hurry up and tell him before he really _is_ gone! Come on! What's the hold up?

Giving up on trying to peel me off, Yami put an arm around me. "Yes, Yuugi. I'm still here. I was waiting for you before I left. I should have told you, shouldn't I?" Yami! Stop it! Now _you're_ stalling! Come on, please don't make me have to wait to tell you.

"Yami, you don't have to go! You can stay here!" I said, trying to unscramble the words in my head. I needed to say the necessary things. Not this! What am I doing? Please hurry up and say it!

Yami sighed. "So, Ryou told you?"

I looked up in confusion at Yami. "Ryou told me what?" Maybe he really does know. If he knows, why is he willingly leaving?! Yami, why are you doing this?

"Bakura said that he told Ryou to tell you that..." Oh my gosh, Yami knows. Why, though? Why is he leaving?! Does he not know how I feel about him? Does he not know how much I need him here with me? "...him, me, and the other two were going to Egypt for a week. No big deal, right, Yuugi?"

Yami, that's not the truth! Why are you falling for Bakura's constant lies? Please, look at the reality of the situation! Bakura is lying, Yami! Please, please realize that!

I shook my head. "No, that's not really... Yami, don't..." I tried to say. Why can't I finish what I'm saying? What is keeping me from telling Yami? Pretty soon, I'm not going to be able to tell Yami _anything_!

"Yuugi, it's just a week. It'll all be okay. You don't need to worry about anything, alright?" Yami reassured me. No, it's not going to be okay! I do have to worry! Who knows how long you'll actually be gone. Yami, please listen to me...

Oh, who am I kidding? He doesn't know what I'm thinking. I have to actually _say_ this. But I can't. I can't finish anything I say! I try so hard to finish a sentence, but I can't do it. Please, Yuugi, please try...

"Y-Yami," I stuttered.

"What is it?" Yami asked. "I'm going to have to leave shortly, so please hurry. I don't mean to rush you, but please say it." I don't have time to tell Yami the whole story. I can't do it. I can't. Yami then said, "There's something you have to tell me, right?" He knows what I have to say. He wants me to tell him now. Yami knows what I've been meaning to say for a long time now. Yami knows...

I've got it. I'll tell Yami my feelings first. At least that way, I don't have to feel like I haven't accomplished anything. Then after, I'll try to tell Yami what I can about why he really has to leave. Yes, that's it! Alright, go Yuugi! You can do it!

"Yami, I have to tell you this. I'm not sure how long I've been needing to tell you this, and I don't know the full reason why. But, I think you should be aware of this," I said. Woah, deja vu much. Alright, I've already tried this at least five times now. I know how to tell him this. Yami stared into my eyes, a small smile across his face. It was just the confidence I need! Here I go! "Yami, I... I love-"

Suddenly, Yami was dragged away from me by a familiar person. I saw the person as Marik. Yami protested, "Hey, Yuugi was trying to tell me something! Get your hands off of me!" Marik hid his smirk pretty well, but I could still see traces of it.

"Come on, we're going to be late if we don't hurry!" Marik said with the fakest tone of concern I have ever heard. From anyone. Marik doesn't care. Marik doesn't care about anything. Anything at all.

"At least let Yuugi finish saying what he was saying!" Yami yelled, still trying to break from Marik's grasp. There was no answer. He opened the driver's side back door of the car and forced Yami to retreat into the backseat. Not even two seconds after, the car window was rolled down, and Yami's face appeared. All I could do was stare in defeat. I lost. Yami's leaving. And I couldn't do anything to stop it.

The window for the driver's side rolled down as well, revealing Malik. How could he do this?! Why is Malik complying with this all?! Then, I saw his face when he glanced at me. Malik's face had agony and disappointment at himself written in his eyes and expression. I knew Malik wouldn't do this with his own free will. I guess Bakura or Marik told him the real reason why this had to happen. The reason I don't know. I could also see Marik seated in the seat next to Malik, and Bakura behind him and next to Yami. Those two had the biggest look of accomplishment I had ever seen. It sickened me.

"Yami..." I whispered quietly. I gave a quick look at Malik, and I noticed how guilty he suddenly became. I wanted to know why. Then, the car started to roll backward out of the driveway and into the street. Yami leaned out of the window as I started to run toward the car. It hadn't driven foward an away just yet. I yelled out, "Yami!" I knew it was useless. Malik seemed even more guilty.

"Yuugi!" he yelled back, as if understanding what I meant. I held out a hand, trying to reach for Yami. Malik glanced at me, and gave me a look of apology. Oh no, he was going to drive away. Yuugi, go, stop him! It was too late. Malik slowly started to drive away down the street. I ran again, still trying to reach Yami. Yami held out his hand and yelled out my name on more time before the car was out of sight.

I couldn't believe it. I couldn't believe what just happened. I quit running. I dropped my arm to my side. I fell to my knees. I planted my palms against the ground. I stared holes into the cracks of the sidewalk below me. My shoulders shook. Tears spilled over the brims of my eyes, dripping like rain to the ground. I failed miserably. I tried to get Yami to stay. I tried to tell Yami my feelings. I couldn't do it. I failed. Sorrowful sobs escaped my lips, my breathing uneven. Occasionally, I would choke on the sharp breaths I drew in. I hated Bakura and Marik for doing this to me. I hated myself for not preventing Yami from leaving. This was my fault. All my fault.

From behind me, out in the distance, I heard Ryou call out my name in concern. I didn't turn to look at him. Puddles of tears formed on the sidewalk. Old tears would get dried up, but new tears would fall and take it's place, never letting the sidewalk stay dry. The calls got louder, but I still didn't address it. Maybe this was all a dream. Maybe I fell asleep in class and Ryou is trying to wake me up before the teacher finds out. Maybe Yami is in a different classroom, wondering what I wanted to tell him. That had to be it. There was no other explination.

"Yuugi!" Ryou gasped, crouching at my side and holding an arm around my shoulders. "Yuugi, what's wrong? Yuugi!" I couldn't answer him. I wasn't able to get anything past the sobs. "Yuugi," Ryou said once more. I shook my head.

"I-I couldn't g-g-get Yami to s-stay... Y-Yami still doesn't k-know..." I sobbed quietly. Ryou pulled me closer to him, trying to comfort me. I wanted to push him off of me and run home. I wanted to run after the car Yami disappeared in. I wanted to cry endlessly. There were so many emotions hitting me at once. Sadness, depression, agony, anger, so many others. I couldn't comprehend them all. "R-Ryou... Y-Yami's gone..."

Ryou silently rocked me back and forth soothingly. "Yuugi, it'll all be okay," he told me. My eyes widened. That's what Yami said. Those were Yami's words. And it didn't end up okay. I shut my eyes tightly, tears finding their way out through the corners of my eyes.

"It's not going to be okay!" I suddenly said, though never looking up. "Yami's gone, and I didn't even get a chance to tell him! And you say that this will all turn out okay?!"

"Yuugi-"

I interrupted, "No, stop it! I don't want to hear it anymore!" I turned to Ryou, staring him down with my blood shot eyes. Tear stains ran down my cheeks. "How is this going to be okay?! Just how?" I questioned. Then, before I knew what I was doing, I reached out to Ryou, hugging him tightly and burying my face in his shirt, crying my eyes out. This wasn't like when I cried in Yami's arms. I tried to bring the feeling of Yami holding me close to him as I cried back, but I couldn't do it. It wasn't the same, and it would never be.

Ryou hugged me. "Yuugi, I'm sorry this had to happen to you," he said, not even trying to tell me this would be okay. "I really am..."

And what do you know. I realized what Bakura and Marik were trying to do.

They were trying to build me and Yami up, then before we could truly be happy, they ripped us apart.

But they didn't just tear us apart. They tore my heart apart with it.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Kurisuten: -sobbing- Oh my Kura, poor Yuugi-chan!

Kishichi: -sniffle- That is so sad...

Kurisuten: -suddenly finds Yuugi and huggles him while still sobbing- YUUGI I AM SO SORRY I HAD TO TYPE THAT!

Yuugi: -still sobbing- T-Things will be alright in the end, r-right?

Kurisuten: I'M NOT ALLOWED TO SPOIL THE ENDING!

-Kurisuten and Yuugi sob while huggling each other-

Kishichi: -sweatdrop- O-Okay, so anyway, we are so very sorry that we had to break Yuugi and Yami apart. But we can only hope for the best between them! But... The next few chapters are going to be angst-fests. Trust me.

Kurisuten: -sniffle- Question time! Okay, so... How much do you want to kill Baku and Mari right now? Not the real question, but answer if you must! Real question! **How long do you think it will take before Yami finally returns to Yuugi, if he returns at all.**

Yuugi: I-If Yami returns at a-all?! Y-You mean, Yami might not come back?

Kurisuten: I AM SO SORRY! -sobs again-

Kishichi: Keep in mind that the next chapter is a special chapter! Look forward to it! Please review, minna-san! Ja ne!

Kurisuten: I AM STILL SO S-SORRY!

Yuugi: -sobbing still-

Kishichi: -whispers to readers- Reviews make Yuugi-chan feel better. -wink-


	18. All That I've Got

Kurisuten: -still sobbing and huggling a sobbing Yuugi-

Kishichi: O.o Anyway.... Since Kurisuten is off sobbing about her own works, I got to take charge with the A/N! Go me! -ahem- Anyway, first of all, we would like to thank **Raven-Kyrie-Yuna** for being our 100th reviewer! Therefore, this chapter is dedicated to you! :3

Also, even though this was pure coincidental, this chapter is the Yami POV chapter! And actually, we didn't expect that this chapter would fall under the 100th review chapter dedication chapter as well. So ahaha, that's pretty cool, isn't it?

This chapter and the next will explain a whole lot of unanswered questions! We know that the story so far has been raising many questions, and I can only hope that these next chapters will explain some things. And this might even answer some of the questions at the end of the chapters! Though, I have to warn you, this chapter is very depressing. And the next chapter is even worse. I hope that doesn't make anyone die on the inside... XD

Anyway, I might as well get on with the disclaimer-

Kurisuten: No. No disclaimer. I'm not in the mood.

Kishichi: B-But-

Kurisuten: Get. Out. NOW!

Kishichi: Y-yes, Yamichi-chan..... -leaves the room quickly-

Kurisuten: ......Hope you like the chapter! :3

Yuugi: -sniffle-

**(INCASE YOU DIDN'T READ THE ABOVE, THIS IS THE YAMI'S POV CHAPTER. DO NOT GET CONFUSED WITH WHO'S POINT OF VIEW IT IS.)**

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

There he goes. Yuugi is slowly getting farther and farther away. I can't do anything to stop that fact, either. But, there was just something I didn't get; I told Yuugi it would only be a week. I was only going to be gone a week. There wasn't any possible way he'd be that upset, right? I mean, I left on a really short notice, but still. Could it be that Yuugi couldn't tell me what he was trying to say? I knew what he was going to say, and I knew it was super important that he told me, but a week wasn't going to hurt anything, right? And I could randomly find some money along the ground and use that to call Yuugi from a pay phone, couldn't I? Let's hope that a lot of people drop money along the side of the road.

And, I find that highly doubtful.

Without warning, the car window started to roll up again while I was still halfway out of the window. I quickly brought myself back into the car, just barely getting out of the way before I was stuck between the car door and the window. I caught Marik leaning back from across the car, who I assumed was the one to roll up the window to begin with. I glared darkly at him before leaning my elbow against the side of the door, resting my head in my hand while watching the world fly by me. Marik was asking Malik about something, but I wasn't paying attention. Something about remembering to bringing the bags with us. Which, of course we did. Personally, I didn't want to leave. This was supposed to be my two weeks of Yuugi, and only Yuugi. Now that two weeks has been cut in half. I wouldn't have gone, but Malik told me that I should go. My only confusion with this was the look of guilt washed over Malik's face. And Bakura and Marik seem much... happier. About something. Though, I'd rather not ask them anything.

Speaking of Bakura, he was slowly leaning toward me with a creepy glare on his face. I turned to look at him and ask what he was doing, and I discovered that he was three inches from my face. Before I could ask him anything, Bakura said, "Wanna know something absolutely hilarious that I should tell you?"

No.

"Uh, what?" I replied, trying to scoot away from Bakura. At this time, Marik also turned to look to see what was going on, apparently interested in what Bakura had to say. All Malik was doing what stare at the road in front of us while digging his fingernails into the steering wheel. Something was going on. What was going on, though?

"You know how I said that we were going to Egypt for a week?" he said, not changing his facial expression, or even moving his position. I nodded. "Well, I lied." It doesn't surprise me that Bakura can tell a lie with a straight face. But I don't care about that right now. Bakura lied about going to Egypt? Then where _are _we going?

Slowly, I asked, just to clarify that I was right, "So we _aren't_ going to Egypt?" Bakura sighed loudly and retreated back to how he was originally sitting. He sunk in the seat, crossing his arms. Marik's eyes suddenly grew surprised and he glared at Bakura, obviously not liking what he was going to say. Malik sunk his nails in the wheel deeper.

"No," Bakura sighed, "we _are_ going to Egypt."

"Then what did you lie about?" I asked. I had no clue what Bakura was talking about. But Marik did. His glare got worse and I knew he was trying not to reach over the back of the seat and smack Bakura across the head. Which he totally deserves anyway.

Bakura shot me a wicked smirk. "You know when I said it was only going to be for a week? I lied." It figures. I was angry. I was _beyond_ angry. "Actually, I'm not sure how long we'll be there! It all depends on if Ryou finds it or not." Yes, Bakura was confusing me with what he was talking about, but more than anything, he was pissing me off.

Marik leaned over the back of the seat, about ready to kill Bakura with his glare. "Bakura," he seethed through his teeth, "if I were you, I wouldn't continue with what you're saying." Malik was repeating something over and over again, but I couldn't hear what he was saying.

Bakura ignored Marik's threat. "Unless Ryou finds that note I hid for him, then we'll never leave." Marik was only getting angrier as he went on. "That note explained everything that me and Marik planned, and should he find it, all he has to do is mail us a letter with the address perscribed on the note and we'll come back." Yeah, thanks for explaining this, but I'm still confused.

"Well, why are we leaving in the first place?" I asked dangerously. Marik shot a glare at me, warning me not to speak any longer. I didn't listen to him. "What did you do? And how did you even get me involved?"

Bakura smirked and looked away. "I guess you'll never find out."

Turning back to the front, Marik said, "Good Bakura. Don't tell him anything else."

What the hell are Bakura and Marik talking about? Why am I involved with whatever Marik and Bakura are talking about? Hell, why am I even agreeing to do this?! Oh. Right. I didn't _fully_ agree. But whatever is going on, I have a feeling it's not what I think it is. And I _will_ find out. Or else some people are going to die painfully- No, stop it. There is no need to resort to murder. There is no rule against wishing death, though.

For a few moments, it was silent. The only sounds were from the car. Even the car radio had the volume down to zero. It was a very akward silence. Bakura and Marik both seemed pretty satisfied with themselves, but I was deep in thought. I wanted to know desperately what was going on. I needed to know. Something horrible was going on, and I had to find out. Malik, on the other hand, was engraving fingernail marks in the steering wheel. He was struggling not to crash the car on Marik and Bakura's side, and I couldn't blame him. But there was something Malik wanted to tell me. And it was what I wanted to know. Whether he'd tell me or not, I'll just have to wait and see.

The minutes dragged on. One minute became five, five became fifteen. I still couldn't figure out what Marik and Bakura were up to. I tried so hard to realize their intents, but somewhere along the way a certain face appeared in my mind. Yuugi. There were no words in my mind. Just him. Just Yuugi and his beautiful face. I could remember every detail about it; I knew the shine in his eyes, I knew every indent and curve in his cheeks, I even knew just how soft his skin had been. And then I remembered that one day; I remembered the day I kissed Yuugi. No, that shouldn't even be considered a kiss. That was more like... pure bliss. Yes, that is a much better way to describe it. But, I can't help but feel guilty for trying to take it too far than it needed to. I know Yuugi forgave me for it, but I still feel just a little bit guilty. Though, I wouldn't take back what I did for anything. I wasn't rejected, nor was I the only one enjoying the moment while it lasted. Every little touch, every little sound, I'd like to hear and feel them again. Yuugi was-- no, is --just an amazing person. It would kill me if I were to find out I could never see him again. And I fear that's the case here. I leaned my head against the window and closed my eyes, praying to whatever god that was listening to me and/or cared that I wouldn't have to never see Yuugi again.

Suddenly, the car took a violent turn, instantly slamming my head against the glass and waking me from the light sleep I was in. Unclosing my eyes, I noticed where we were; we had finally arrived at the airport parking lot. I really didn't want to be here. Unfortunately, what choice do I have now? I could have disagreed when I had the chance. That one chance is gone now. Way to go, genius. After searching a little bit, the car took a sharp turn into a blank parking space. Malik violently turned the key, switching the car to 'off'. In that very second, Bakura and Marik had already left the car and were walking toward the large building. I opened the door to exit the car and put one foot on the black-paved ground, until I noticed that Malik had not moved from the position he was in. I swung my leg back into the car and reshut the door. Asking cautiously, I said, "Malik, what's wrong-"

He whipped around to face me. I could tell he was trying not to hit something. Voice raised slightly, Malik said, "Marik and Bakura didn't want you and Yuugi together. They were trying to push you together so they could tear you two apart. I have no fucking idea how long we are even going to be gone. I didn't want to do this, okay? I have no fucking clue why I did this. I didn't even know what Bakura and Marik were doing until they told me right before we left. I was going to decline, but I didn't. I fucking regret it, so don't you dare hate me for this. If you have to hate anyone, hate those two. They told Ryou that they were the ones that murdered Seto Kaiba and his little runt of a brother, and that you were involved in it as well. That was the story Yuugi got, and judging by his reaction, he probably realized what Bakura and Marik were actually doing. Okay? That's what they're doing. I don't know anything else, and I wasn't even supposed to tell you. But you're my friend, so I'm obligated to tell you. So let me take this moment to apologize. I'm fucking sorry, alright?"

I stared at Malik with wide eyes, all through his rant. I couldn't believe it. I just couldn't believe what I had gotten myself into. I fell into Bakura and Marik's trap, and now I had no way of escaping now. I hate them for doing this to me. I hate them for doing this to Yuugi. I hate myself for letting them do this. I should hate Malik, too. But I don't. I knew he wasn't lying when he said he didn't want to do this. Malik wasn't that kind of person. Yeah, he can be an asshole sometimes, but overall, Malik isn't a bad person. The other two, however, I want to murder them. I know I wouldn't bring myself to do that, but I wish I did have the guts to. And I wouldn't regret it either. What I do regret is how I am just letting them drag me away from Yuugi. I regret leaving Yuugi all alone. I regret hurting him emotionally, just like how I promised I wouldn't. I honestly hate myself for breaking that promise.

Before I could ask Malik anything else, he quickly left the car before storming in the direction Bakura and Marik had gone. I was motionless. I wanted to stay in this car until those three came back. I wanted to suddenly learn how to hot-wire a car and go back to Yuugi. I wanted to kill the two that came up with this idea. I'd rather die than leave Yuugi.

Angrily, I unlocked the car door before opening it and stepping out of the car. I pressed the lock down again and slammed it shut. However, I didn't walk away; I stood there, hand still on the door, staring at the ground. Thoughts rapidly ran through my head. Every single one of them were of Yuugi; the look of happiness Yuugi had when we were together, the blush that crossed his face whenever he was embarrassed, how adorable he looked when he was asleep. The way sadness would wash over his face completely when he cried. The last thought stuck in my mind the most. True, I only saw him cry once, but I could imagine how much he could possibly be crying now that I'm gone. Me leaving must have killed him inside as much as it did me. Maybe it killed him even more than me. Yuugi cared about me so much, much more than I did. I just proved it. I let myself get dragged away like this. I hate myself. I hate myself more than I hate Bakura and Marik. Curling my hand into a fist, I punched the side of the car. Pain seered through my arm, making me flinch but nothing more. I had probably left a dent in the spot I had hit. Staggering, I removed my hand, turned the opposite way, and crashed into the car, sinking to the ground. I layed my head in the knees and examined my knuckles; they were bleeding. I didn't care. I shut my eyes and resisted the urge to cry.

A sudden sound caused me to look up in the direction of the noise. I saw Bakura put his foot back on the ground; I asumed he kicked the car next to me. He held an irritated glare. "Hey, let's go. Plane leaves in half an hour. Get your ass up."

I wanted to kick _him_. I didn't want to leave. Quietly, I said, "Malik told me. _Everything_."

Smirking, Bakura placed his hands on his hips. "Ah, I see. You must be reluctant to leave then, aren't you?" He then looked at something before looking back at me with an even wider smirk. "Were you so angry that you put a dent in the car? Must have hurt when you hit it, right?"

I seethed, "Don't act so familiar. Do you even realize what you've done to Yuugi?"

"Hmm, not even thinking about yourself? Just going to go straight to thinking of little Yuugi, eh?" Bakura knew he was pissing me off. I wanted to tell-- no, scream at --him that I wasn't selfish like him and Marik. I was able to hold my tounge. He continued, "Of course I know what I've done to Yuugi; why else do you think I did this?"

He was making it obvious that he didn't care about Yuugi. It was also obvious that he didn't care too much about me, either. I stood up and stared Bakura cold in the eye. "Alright, what about Ryou? Do you realize how much he liked you? Do you realize how much he cared about you? Do you realize how much you're hurt _him_?"

The smirk on Bakura's face was suddenly wiped away and replaced with an evil glare. Darkly, he said, "Yeah, I do realize it. However, I've taught Ryou to be strong on his own. Unlike you, I taught Ryou to not be so dependent on others. All you've done is teach Yuugi to rely on others. No, wait, to rely on _you_. That's all you've done. I have nothing to regret. What about you, huh?" He ended his sentence by shoving me slightly. I was able to overlook this.

"You're wrong," I countered. "I've done nothing of the sort. So, shut up and focus on something other than your own cruel intents. Also, maybe get your head out of the clouds and snap back to reality for once."

With a chuckle, Bakura replied, "I could say the same to you." Before I could say anything to him, he turned to walk back where he originally was going. I slowly followed him, but noticed that the trunk of the car was slightly opened. I peered inside and noticed the bags were gone. Did maybe Malik or one of the other two take them? Shaking it off, I shut the trunk and followed after Bakura.

During the long walk, I thought about Bakura's words. Could... could Bakura be right? Maybe that really _is_ what I've been doing. No, stop it, Yami! He's trying to get inside your head! You haven't been doing that, and you know it! But, maybe I don't know it. I'm starting to think Bakura may be right about me. I have a dark heart. I've only been thinking of what's best for me, not for Yuugi. No, don't think of that! I haven't been doing that to Yuugi! Bakura is _wrong_!

One thing is for sure, though.

I have no reason not to hate myself for what I've done.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Kurisuten: -sniffle- I-I feel so bad for Yami-kun! -huggles Yami- You don't need to blame yourself!

Yami: ...am I a bad person?

Kishichi: ............Anyway, if you didn't notice, this chapter had elements from the Orichalcos arc of the actual series. No, it's not exactly the same. But the basic idea is pretty damn close. So now that I've told you that, do you notice the similarity?

Alright, the question for this chapter! ...Do we have a question, Kurisuten?

Kurisuten: Hmm....... I've got one! **Is Bakura right about about what he said about Yuugi being dependent on Yami? And please explain why or why not (because long reviews make me feel better about myself).** Review me your thoughts! Don't worry, Yami. You don't have to worry about what Bakura said. He's not right anyway.

Yami: ...what if the readers think so?

Kurisuten: ......Don't worry about that yet.

Kishichi: Ja ne, minna-san!

Kurisuten: Ja!

Yami: ...-waves-


	19. What Hurts the Most

**(IMPORTANCE. READ. NOW. OR ELSE.)**

Kurisuten: This should have been said last chapter, but the last chapter was just a tad bit late because I started typing this chapter right in the middle of it. Hey, I had ideas that I needed to get out before they got lost!

Kishichi: You could have written it down.

Kurisuten: I would have lost the paper.

Kishichi: True.

Kurisuten: But anyway, we're back to Yuugi's POV. This was a bitch to type, only because of the fact that IT'S SO FREAKING LONG. This chapter had more to say than the chapter about the party! You know, the chapter with the beautiful lime scene? Yeah, that one. This is probably why I started typing this early. Becuase I knew that it would be so freaking long.

Kishichi: And pretty much the entire thing is based off of a song.

Kurisuten: It's based entirely off a song. -points to chapter title- It's sung by Rascal Flatts. Go look it up. Anyway, I didn't think the chapter would make much sense if I put it in the order of the lyrics. So. It's pretty much mixed up. But hey, do yourself a favor and look up the song and/or lyrics and see what I mean.

Kishichi: Basically, the only thing not based off of the song is Yuugi's memories.

Kurisuten: That reminds me! Yuugi has little flashbacks in this chapter, too. Except. They're _interesting_! All of these flashbacks are _unused ideas for the story_! I felt bad that I didn't include them, because some of them are totally adorable and funny! So, I put them in this chapter as memories of him and Yami. I'm sure you guys are going to be glad I put them here as well, because most of them were really good ideas.

Kishichi: ...Couldn't you have used them in-

Kurisuten: DON'T SPEAK OF IT! Anyway, please enjoy the chapter! This was the hardest chapter to type, after all! -generic anime wink-

(Note: Yeah. I know. The beginning of the chapter moves along quickly, but hey, it tells enough, right?)

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

It felt like a year since Yami left. In reality, it was only a few hours. Ryou couldn't keep me outside in the cold, so he brought me inside of his house with him. He let me cry on his shoulder, and the entire time he comforted me. I was reminded of the time Yami let me cry on him, and that just made me cry even more. The very thought of Yami brought more tears in my eyes, and he was the only thing on my mind. When I finally did stop crying an hour later, though, I didn't want to leave. I didn't want to cry in front of my grandpa. In fact, I didn't even want him knowing Yami was even gone. I told Ryou not to even tell him, and he reluctantly agreed not to. It was after dark when I left, and I didn't like walking alone at night. However, I was so wrapped up in the fact that Yami was gone, I couldn't remember that I didn't like to walk alone. What I did notice was that the sky had gotten cloudy and I expected rain (it didn't seem cold enough for it to snow). My asumptions were proven true when I heard thunder in the distance. I had made it home before it could rain, thankfully enough.

I took a deep breath before opening the front door and walking inside the house. I wasn't trying to look happy, but I tried not to look depressed. My grandpa, who had been making dinner in the kitchen, turned to look at me. His face lit up, as if he had been waiting for me to return home for a while. "Ah, Yuugi! There you are! I was wondering when you'd get home. Lucky you didn't get caught in the storm; any longer and you'd be walking in the house looking like you fell in a pool before arriving!" He laughed loudly, like he usually did. "I just started making dinner, so I hope you aren't too hungry."

No. I'm not hungry. I don't want to do anything. Putting on a small, fake smile, I said, "It's okay. I'm actually not all that hungry."

He look slightly disappointed, pouting humorously. Just like how Yami used to. Oh, how difficult it is not to burst into tears right now. "Really now? Well, alright. But don't except me not to make any for you. I'll save some for you in case you want some later. That fine with you?"

Slowly, I nodded. "Yeah, that's fine," I replied, starting my way up the stairs. My legs felt heavy; it was hard to walk without keeping one hand on the wall for balence. I stared at the ground as I walked, not once looking up from the floor. I knew my way around the house enough not to accidently run into a wall. I knew how many footsteps it took to get to my own room. I was surprised I could remember that much with the many thoughts invading my mind. I put a hand on the doorknob and froze. I thought over and over, Yami is going to be in my room telling me that he was able to stay. I half believed my false accusation. When I finally did opened the bedroom door, I felt a heavy weight on my shoulders, and a familiar lump in my throat reappeared. No living or dead soul had been in my room. I inhaled a shaky breath before shutting the door and crossing the room to my bed, slowly laying myself down.

I didn't know how long I had been there. I didn't even remember falling asleep. But I do remember that a bright flash of light, along with the continuous pitter-patter sound of the rain hitting the window, woke me up. The storm that I knew would make its appearance finally started. A loud clap of thunder caused me to flinch, but I didn't address it directly. I took a small glance at the clock, only to discover it was already half past nine. I sat up, crossing my legs. I looked out the window and watched trails of water run down the fogged glass. Occasionally, a flash of lightning or the sound of thunder rolling would try to get me out of my trance, but I wouldn't let it. I still couldn't get over the fact that Yami was gone, and I didn't know when to expect him back. I didn't have a phone number I could contact him at, nor did I have an address. I had nothing. I didn't have the warm arms that encircled me when I was feeling pesmistic. I didn't have those crimson eyes that led me in the right direction when I was lost. I didn't have that bartone voice that told me everything was going to be alright. I didn't have anything anymore. All I had was the regret of letting Yami go. I hadn't realized cold tears were trailing down my cheeks until a lone tear dripped off my chin and hit my hand. Since I was aware of my tears, I cut loose the sobs that I was holding up inside of me ever since I came home. I buried my face into the pillow and sobbed until I finally could no longer stay awake.

I had no nightmares. What's worse, I had no dreams either. I had nothing to comfort me as I slept. No one comforted me before I fell asleep, no one comforted me as I awoke the next morning. Waking up had to be the most difficult thing for me to do right then. The sky was as cloudy as yesterday, and it was still drizzling. The clock read ten fifteen, but my mind read time to sleep. I didn't want to be in reality if Yami wasn't in mine. Still, I peeled myself from the covers and trudged across the floor, wiping away the dried tears along my face. I put false thoughts in my head that Yami would be downstairs, talking with my grandpa as he ('he' being my grandpa) made breakfast. I wanted to believe that, but I knew I couldn't, simply because it wasn't real. I didn't even know what was real anymore. The only thing I knew was that Yami was gone, and I didn't know when that would be wrong.

I trudged down the stairs and turned the corner into the kitchen. There's my grandpa, sitting at the table, drinking a cup of coffee and reading a paper of some sort. Here I am, walking into the kitchen to get a glass of milk or whatever I grabbed first in the refridgerator. Something is missing from the scene in my mind; Yami isn't there. I knew he wouldn't be there, so why do I feel my heart sinking? I sat in the closest chair to me, taking a small sip of the milk I had just poured, and stared at the table. I didn't say anything. I didn't want to say anything. I wanted to sit here and try to tell myself none of this was happening. However, my grandpa didn't know that I wanted to close my voice that moment.

"So, Yuugi," he said, looking up at me, "today's the start of your two week vacation, huh?" I nodded. "Excited that Christmas is in six days?" I nodded again, despite that being false. "Know what you want?" I shook my head, that being a lie as well. I wanted Yami, but I knew that wasn't possible for me to have. My grandpa hummed. "I'd think fast if I were you." He chuckled softly before going back to the paper he was reading. What a way to kill my morning for me. I stood up, poured what was left in the glass down the drain of the sink, then ran back upstairs into my room.

Upon shutting the door, I sunk to the floor, my back pressed against the wood of the door. I held back a sob; I didn't want to cry. I wanted to get my head back into reality and realize that Yami was gone. He was gone, and I needed to get over it. But no matter how much I wanted to, I couldn't. I couldn't get over it that simply. I haven't even let Yami know of my bottled up feelings for him; so how can I get over it with no thought to it? I couldn't. Suddenly, memories flooded my mind, just as they did yesterday. Even though they didn't seem like they meant as much as the previous ones had, they meant the world to me.

-

_November 8_

_Yawning loudly, I opened my eyes. Sunlight poured in through the window on the floor next to me. I surveryed my surroundings, noticing I had been sleeping on the floor. Yes, I was in my room, but why was I on the floor and not in my bed? Then, I saw that next to me there was an empty pile of blankets on the floor as well. I remembered that Yami had spent the night over at my house last night. Not even bothering to check the time, I stood up and made my way out of my room, down the hallway, and down the stairs._

_I skipped into the kitchen an spotted Yami sitting at a chair, still dressed in pajama pants and a loose white t-shirt, drinking something from a mug that he held in one hand. I giggle quietly to myself and took the avalible chair closest to Yami. I put my elbows on the table and rested my head in both hands, staring at Yami with a tired yet curious smile. He looked at me and raised an eyebrow. "Good morning?"_

_"Good morning," I replied, candy-coating my voice. Yami laughed silently to himself. Then, I asked, still with a sweet voice, "So wha'cha drinking there?" I picked one elbow from the table and pointed it at the mug set in front of Yami, though still having his hand occupying the sides._

_Yami glanced inside of the cup before looking back up at me. "Coffee," he replied._

_"You had to think about it before answering?" I commented. Yami chuckled slightly. "I didn't know you drank coffee." I really hadn't. It didn't hurt to ask, either. Besides, I'm a curious teenager; what do you expect?_

_"Yes," Yami said, "I do." I watched him with the same smile as before, tilting my head sideways slightly. Every once in a while, Yami would look at me with a confused smile, but I'd just smile wider and bring my shoulders forward cutely. He would laugh slightly before going back to staring at whatever it was he was staring at. Yami took another drink before finally setting the mug back on the table and completely removing his hand from it. An idea suddenly came to me. I took both of my hands and clasped them around the unattended mug. I slid it closer to me before lifting it to my lips and taking a small sip. Yami looked over at me at this point, just in time to see the sour face I made. I pushed the drink back to Yami._

_"Why do you drink bitter coffee? There's not much sugar in there, is there?" I asked, looking curiously into Yami's eyes. I could tell that Yami was trying not to laugh at my statement. I drew my eyebrows together in confusion and cutely pouted._

_Sighing in fake annoyance (because Yami knew that it was funny.), he replied, "I'm not sure what you mean. I put two and a half spoon-fulls of sugar." I raised an eyebrow and gasped in curiousity._

_"That's hardly any sugar at all!" I exclaimed. Yami gave me a 'really now?' look._

_"That's how much sugar you're supposed to put in coffee," he said, laughing a little. I crossed my arms. Sighing, Yami said, "Alright, then how much sugar do _you_ put in coffee?"_

_I thought for a minute. "Umm.... about five or six spoon-fulls," I replied, smiling sheepishly at Yami. His eyes widened slightly._

_"Are you kidding me?" he asked. I shook my head honestly. "That's like diabetes in a cup. Are you serious?" I nodded again, giggling at the diabetes comment. Yami just smiled and chuckled with me._

_-_

_November 21_

_I glared at the pages of the book. My grandpa wasn't here, I was bored to tears, and all I could think of to do was pick a random book off of the bookshelf in the living room and read it. I should have picked a more interesting book, because so far, this was just boring. So, I'm not solving my bordem problem; I'm making it worse. Then again, it's better than going on doing nothing. I readjusted my position on the recliner and crossed my legs, glaring even more at the words inside of the covers of the book._

_The sound of the doorbell rang through the house, and I meant to tell the person the door was open. The doorbell rang again, and I ingorned it once again. After a few moments, the lock clicked and the door opened, revealing Yami._

_"Hey, Yuugi- umm, Yuugi, what are you reading?" Yami asked, closing the door and making his way over to me. He leaned over my shoulder to try to read the words I had been reading. Without answering him, I put my finger in the page I was on and closed the book enough for Yami to see the title of the book. "_Jane Eyre_?" he read, mispronouncing 'Eyre'._

_"It's pronounced like 'air'. Not however you said it," I corrected, going back to reading the pages._

_Yami was silent for a few moments. "Is it an interesting book?"_

_"No," I replied. "I was bored and I found the book over there." I pointed to the bookshelf without looking up. "It's about some orphan girl living with her aunt. She's pretty much abused by everyone in the house and stuff. Then she goes to this school and meets this girl that reads some book. I think they became friends." I was abesntmindedly describing what I had just read within the past half hour, not even caring if Yami was listening or not._

_He held out his hand. "Can I see it?" I turned to look at him from over my shoulder. Yami had one hand on the back of the chair and the other still held out. I was confused about whether or not he actually wanted to see the book or if he would put it back on the bookshelf and drag me to who-knows-where. Still, I picked up the small piece of paper I had used as a bookmark from the arm of the chair, shut the book, and placed it in Yami's hand. He turned it over to look at the back cover. Scanning the words, he opened the book and flipped the pages until reaching a page right before the first chapter. A few more moments later, he shut the book and gave it back to me. "Sounds pretty interesting to me."_

_I raised an eyebrow. "Does it?"_

_Yami nodded. "Yeah, I'd like to read it. Maybe you could let me borrow it for a few weeks," he said, bringing his face level to mine. I lightly blushed before nodding in agreement._

_"Y-yeah, okay," I said. I took the piece of paper I had placed in the book out and handed the book to Yami. "I-it's my grandpa's book, so p-please bring it back." Wait, why am I stuttering so much? Could it be because of the small distance between us? Could it be because his hand is touching my hand?_

_Yami stood up to full height again. "Don't worry! I will!"_

_I smiled._

_-_

_December 3_

_It was, once again, a freezing cold December afternoon. School had let out about an hour ago, and the sky warned the people below it that there was a large possibility of snow. Still, that didn't stop Yami and myself from wandering the sidewalks with no real destination in mind._

_I stretched tiredly. Yawning, I said, "I'm super tired. Yami, can you sit on the ground and let me use you as a pillow?" I smiled up at Yami, who just stared at me with a confused expression. "Please?"_

_"Are you crazy?" Yami asked in return. Giggling, I clung to the arm closest to me of Yami's and nodded. Sighing, Yami said, "How about you go find a nice park bench to use as a pillow."_

_I gasped, gaining an idea. "Great idea, Yami! Let's go find a park, sit on some park bench, then I can use you as a pillow!" I grinned widely, and Yami dropped his forehead into the palm of his hand. Then, I dissembled sadness. "Y-you don't like my idea, Y-Yami?"_

_Yami suddenly looked at me and his eyes widened. "W-what?! No! No, I don't think it's a bad idea! A-actually, I think it's a great idea-" He was suddenly cut off by my sudden laughter. "Yuugi?"_

_"I was only kidding, Yami," I said, smiling up at Yami softly. "No need to freak out over it, okay?" Yami stared at me, blinking once then twice, then finally pulled me into a gentle hug. Blushing, I asked, "Why are you hugging me?"_

_"I dunno," Yami shrugged. "I just felt the need to hug you, you know?" Letting me go (way too soon, if you ask me.), he stared into my eyes. "You were serious about the park thing, right?" he asked, straight face and all. Laughing, I nodded._

_-_

I sharply took in a shaky breath of air; each new breath of air I took in seemed colder than the last. I brought one hand to my chest, but my fingers touched something of metal than something of skin and fabric. My fingers coiled around the object, and I pulled it into my sight. It was the same necklace Yami had made and given to me. With both hands, I tried to find the hook to the chain that held it around my neck, and, upon finding it, I unlatched it and held it in one hand. This was the first time I had ever gotten a good look at the necklace charm. I started memorizing every edge, every scratch, every indent. It had been crafted so well, I wondered why I had never noticed it before. I remembered what I had said to him about it when I saw it--

_"Yami, this is really beautiful."_

_"I'm glad you think so."_

No. Beautiful is an understatement; no words could possibly describe it. It was just so... undeniably amazing. Undescribably beautiful. Un-something thoughtful. There were so many things I felt about it, that I could never put it into words. Actions, maybe. If you count a giant tackle-hug as expressing my feelings, then yes, I could express my feelings into actions. Oh, no, wait, I couldn't even do that anymore. Who could I express these emotions to? Ryou? My grandpa? The only applicable person to tell would be Yami. And... he's... he's gone. I can't tell him anything else that I could possibly want to tell him. And that's what kills me the most. Wasn't I the one who said that I would tell Yami my feelings no matter what? What happened to that? Why can't I tell him anymore? Just why did Yami had to leave? All of this, every single little bit of it, is Bakura's fault and Marik's fault. The two of them, I just wish I could have stopped them before they did this. I didn't want to feel this way, but how can I not now? I buried my face in my knees and held the necklace in my hand tightly, while wrapping both hands around my ankles. I had almost everything; now, what's left? Nothing.

Some time later, a sudden knock on the door behind me startled me from my trance (you could call it that). Then, a voice was heard on the other side. "Yuugi," the voice said. Grandpa. Not the exact person I want to talk to. "Ryou's on the phone."

Great. Awesome. Amazing. That makes me feel _so_ much better. Quietly, I stood up and opened the door, revealing my grandpa. The phone in his hand was held out to me, as if he expected me to take it. I grabbed it, muttered a small 'thank you', then shut the door once again, sinking back to the floor like before. I pressed the phone to my ear. "Hello?" I said in a small voice.

"_Yuugi! You aren't dead!_" Ryou, on the other line, shouted in glee. "_I thought you would kill yourself since Yami left! Thank god you didn't! Wait, are you thinking about it? Or did I stop you before you were going to? Oh, thank god I saved you-_"

"Ryou, shut up!" I yelled into the reciever. "I wasn't going to kill myself! Now was that all you wanted, or can I hang up?" I really didn't mean to yell at Ryou like I did. I do feel guilty for it. But he's sort of making my problem worse. So in a way, no, I'm not sorry.

The line was a bit quiet. "_Hey, Yuugi, are you okay?_" he finally asked. I didn't say anything after that. Was he really asking me if I was okay? Yami just departed the city-- no, continent --and he's asking if I'm _okay_? I mean, that's just so... nice... Ryou really does care about me. He calls to ask if I'm alive, then asks if I'm okay. Woah, don't get the wrong idea; no, I do not like Ryou more than a friend, if that's what you're thinking. But... that's the nicest thing anyone has ever done. If you don't count all that Yami has done.

Hesitantly, I replied, "Honestly... no, I'm not. I'm not okay. I don't know what to do. Can you tell me what I should do?"

"_If you want to talk to me about it, I'm all ears. Maybe talking about it will make you feel better, you know?_"

He's offering to listen to me. Ryou's _offering_ to listen to me. About _my_ problem. Pretty soon, I'm probably going to feel like I'm talking to a therapist. Nonetheless, I took a shaky breath, trying not to let myself cry. "All I wanted to do was tell Yami my feelings, and they knew it. Those damn bastards had to pull us apart so we couldn't be together. And I don't have a phone number or an address to contact Yami at, either. I couldn't even say goodbye. I don't even know when they're coming back. I don't even know if they're coming back at all." Toward the middle of my short rant, tears had started to roll down my cheeks, one by one like soldiers. I didn't even bother trying to stop them.

Ryou quietly listened on the other line. When I finished, he said, "_I didn't want them to leave either. I especially didn't want Yami to leave, because I knew that it would make you sad if he did. I'm not going to tell you that you'd feel better if you let him go, because I know how impossible that is for you. Yami meant everything to you, didn't he?_"

I still couldn't believe how much of a good friend Ryou was. He wasn't one of those people that just said, 'You'll get over it soon, I promise', then the line goes dead. Ryou actually tries to help. I attempted to hold back a sob. "Y-Yes, he meant everything to me... a-and I don't want to be without h-him..."

"_It's hard to let something so close to you go, isn't it?_" Ryou then asked sympathetically. Sniffling, I told him 'yes'. "_You don't have to completely give up yet, though. Maybe, if you believe in yourself and Yami, then you'll get a sign that Yami's coming back. Or maybe you'll get a way to finally contact Yami. You just have to wait a little._"

I shook my head. "B-but, how am I going to know how long to wait? Bakura and Ma-Marik are so unpredictable, w-who know when they're coming back... R-Ryou, all I want is for Yami to come back. What do I do for that?"

"_Yuugi,_" a sigh on the other line said, "_I told you; you just have to wait a little bit._" I was silent. I didn't want to talk about this anymore. I was tired of crying over this, and I just wanted to hang up the phone. I couldn't do that to Ryou, though. Ryou understood the silence and changed the subject. "_Hey, want me to come over there? Or want to come over here?_"

No. "N-not today. I-I really don't want to see anyone..."

"_Are you sure? I'm going to be hanging out with Anzu and Jou and-_"

"I don't want to, Ryou. Not today." I wiped at an eye, trying to dry it, even if just a little bit. I really didn't want to have to deal with anyone today.

There was a sigh of discouragment. "_Alright, Yuugi. Just... try not to tear yourself up on the inside from this, okay?_"

Instead of yelling at Ryou and telling him I'll do what I want and he can't tell me otherwise, I just choked back a sob. "A-alright, Ryou. I won't."

The line went dead. I set the phone on the floor next to me. I, once again, wrapped my arms around my ankles and sobbed quietly into my knees. I didn't want to be so hurt, so broken, like this. I just wanted to start all of this over so I can try to stop this from happening. I really didn't want everything to be like this; I wanted everything to be the way I wanted it. I didn't want Bakura and Marik to ruin it for me. I just wanted Yami to stay. Why couldn't I have had things the way I imagined it?

The sound of the rain hitting the window slowly stopped, even if the clouds never left from the sky. It might snow later, maybe toward sundown. It's barely noon, so maybe it might be nice for me to go for a short walk. Maybe then I'll feel better. Maybe then the heavy weight on my shoulders and over my heart will go away a little. I _do_ want to slowly get over this, because I don't want this to ruin my life. I don't want it to tear me up from the inside out, like Ryou said. I'm just so confused and angry. You know, maybe a walk will help sort my thoughts...

I picked up the phone from the floor as I stood, setting it on the desk upon walking past it. Opening a drawer in the dresser, I pulled out the first pair of jeans my hand grabbed first. I put them on carelessly before scavenging the closet for a jacket, not caring about changing into a different shirt. My fingers touched the fabric of a jacket, and immediately I froze. I knew what jacket I had just touched. And I knew the owner of it as well. I slid it off of the hanger it had been on and held it in my hands, just staring at it; the faded black color, the ripped fabric on the back of it, the frayed edges of the sleeves. Everything about it hit me at once, and I was tempted to throw it to the floor and collapse in tears right next to it. Instead, I slid my arms into the sleeves, noticing how it was a few sizes to large. Still, I put a pair of socks on before retreating my room to walk down the stairs.

My grandpa was sitting in the recliner in the living room, reading a book. Getting a closer look, my heart almost stopped when I saw the title. It's the book that Yami borrowed. It's the book that when he returned it to me, he commented on how well the book was written. It's the book I even read for myself to see if it really was a good book. And Yami hadn't been lying, either. I tried to block the memory from my mind. I was trying to feel better, right? I slid on my shoes that were by the stairs and walked to the front door, putting a hand on the door knob. "Grandpa, I'm going for a walk, okay?" I said, opening the door.

He looked up at me. "Alright, try to be back before dark," he replied, going back to reading the book. Then, I was out of the house and walking along the damp sidewalk.

I didn't really know where I was going. Wherever I was going, though, I tried to avoid the direction of the house Yami used to be in; I didn't want to be reminded of him. I didn't want to be reminded that he was gone more than I already was. The air was cold. I knew it had to be at most fourty degrees. The clouds were as dark as ever, making the scene outside even more dismal. Not many cars were driving along the roads, and not many people were walking around. But this was just a neighborhood street. Some houses had Christmas lights and decorations up, while others looked the same as they did all year. I stared at the ground in front of me, watching my feet alternate between which was first. I knew I wanted to cry, but I was able not to. My breathing was slow, as if I wasn't moving at all; with my slow pace, I might as well not be moving. Life seemed to be moving so slow around me. It was like my life was a picture slideshow, going one picture at a time, not having to worry about going through the slides too quickly. It was going too slow for me.

I want to start over. I want to go back to the first time I tried confessing my feelings to Yami. I want to ignore Ryou and Bakura and tell Yami right then. Imagine how different my life would be then. I wouldn't be like I am now. I would be... happy. I wouldn't be this miserable lost soul in the world. I wouldn't be tearing myself up from this. I want to know what it would be like to be loved by Yami, to be held close to him everyday and not have to worry about half of the things I am right now. Maybe then, I wouldn't be the person I am today. Maybe I'd be the Yuugi Mutou that was hiding in his shell, waiting for the right moment to appear. Maybe, just maybe... I'd actually know what it's like to be loved.

I suddenly stopped. My feet felt frozen to the ground. I looked up and where I was, and I saw I was at the gate to the park I went to with Yami the very first day I met him. I wanted to run away from it and never go near it again, but my feet led me through the gate and along the winding cement path. In the wintertime, the place seemed much different. It was a good different. The atmosphere didn't seem so grey, but instead it was a much lighter place. The bare trees revealed a light grey bark; the grass had a thin white layer of frost across it; the minumum amount of people made the lonely place seem bigger. The wind whispered quietly in my ears, and I could have sworn I heard Yami's voice. I hopelessly looked around me, but I could find that I was the only one. Sadly, I stared at the ground again. The air was getting colder by the minute, and by the looks of the clouds, it would snow. I didn't care anymore about the weather. For all I cared, it could suddenly be a hundred and twelve and I'd still not notice it.

After a few minutes, I looked up to look at my new surroundings (considering I was staring at the ground the entire time). Glancing to the left, something immediately caught my eye. There, sitting at a bench-like table about twenty or thirty meters away, sat Ryou, Anzu, and Jou. All three noticed me the second I noticed them. Anzu stood up, though staying where she was, and waved enthusiastically at me; Jou gave me a wave as well, sticking out his tounge; Ryou gave me a sad smile and waved as well. I tried to fake a smile, holding up my hand and waving it slightly. I started to walk down the path I had been before. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Anzu try to follow me, but Ryou stopped her with a hand on her shoulder and a shake of his head. I was so sorry. But what could I do besides fake a smile and act okay? By the way Ryou acted, of course Anzu and Jou know about what happened. They just aren't the people I want to talk to right now.

I had walked even further before reaching a second gate. Beyond it, many cars drove by, an abundance of people filled the streets, and bright Christmas-colored lights hung from buildings. I had never been to this part of the city, and I was curious. I stepped out of the park and onto the new ground. Looking around me, I had already decided I liked this place. It was different than what I was used to seeing. And I liked it. I started walking along the side of the road, passing by people I didn't know, people with shopping bags, people with little children. I felt like a total outcast in this happy scene. I wasn't meant to be here; I was meant to be sulking at my own house, waiting for the sign that Ryou talked about. Still, no one noticed me as I wandered silently along the bustling croud. One person had stopped to look at me curiously, but didn't try to ask me anything or talk to me. That person, I had recognized as a one of my classmates in Biology; he had always thought of me differently, but never actually had the nerve to talk to me. Good for him. I might as well be nonexsistant amongst the many people, because no one even gave me a second glace. Or a first glace, for that matter. I was kind of hoping someone would stop me and ask if I want to cry on their shoulder and they'd tell me I'd be all right. I never got that. Everyone around me was happy. So why wasn't I?

Someone tapped my shoulder from behind, I turned around slowly to look at them. She had a small face and bright periwinkle eyes, and I swear that her briliant black hair might as well be from a person that you'd see on a shampoo commercial. I didn't know her. Why did she stop me? What did _she_ want? The woman smiled down at me. "Did you drop this?" she asked, holding out a hand. In it, layed something familiar to me. Thin silver chain, golden yellow pyramid clay charm... Had I brought that with me and accidentally dropped it? Nervously, I nodded, taking the necklace into my own shaky hand.

"T-thank you very much, ma'am..." I said quietly to her. I turned to walk away, but she stopped me.

With a concerned stare, she asked, "Is there something wrong? You seem like something's troubling you. Do you maybe want to talk to someone about it?" You have got to be kidding me. I start wishing that someone would stop me as I walked along and asks about my well-being, and here she is! I'm not sure, though, if this is good or bad.

I took a deep breath. "A-actually, yeah... Someone very important to me left really suddenly, a-and these people that he lived with dragged him away, and..." I chose my words carefully, trying not to say anything to this stranger about my love for him. "...and I don't know when he's coming back. And all I want is for him to return, because it's so hard to be without him, a-and..."

The woman stopped me. "Did you try to tell him that he wasn't leaving for the reason he thought?" Is this lady psycic? How did she know that Yami didn't know why he was leaving when I didn't tell her? Nonetheless, I nodded slowly. "You weren't able to, were you?" I nodded again. "And you tried to tell him about your love as well, correct?" Now, I'm freaked out. I didn't say anything about confessing my love to Yami, and yet, here this woman is, talking like she knew the entire situation. I took a shaky breath before nodding again. She knelt to my level and said, "I'm sure that if you really do love him, then those feelings will reach him and he'll come back to you."

"W-what if... what if they don't?" I asked nervously.

"They won't if you act like that," she laughed. "Who knows, maybe if you hope enough that he will return to you, then maybe you'll get a chance to talk to him soon." Personally, I was a little... scared? Freaking out? Nervous? Whatever falls under those categories, it's probably true. What ever happened to the rule your parents gave you; the 'don't talk to strangers' one. I don't know this person, yet she's talking to me. So maybe I'm not the one breaking the rule here. She pointed to the necklace laying in my hand. "That's a pretty necklace; he must have spent a lot of time trying to make that for you. I'm sure he would want you to wear it." Ignoring all emotions of fear and nervousness, I latched the chain around my neck, still holding the charm in my hand. The woman smiled and stood up again. Before turning around to leave, she told me, "Don't forget what I told you, alright Yuugi?" With one last smile and a wave, she turned around and walked away into the sea of people. I watched her walk away. How had she known about Yami? How had she known about me? As I turned away, I could have sworn I saw her disappear like an illusion.

I followed a few more streets chosen at random, noticing the population slowly decreasing until it was just me again. I hadn't even noticed. All I had on my mind was the lady that stopped me. I didn't know her, and she had not known me, either. I had my doubts that she knew Yami as well. Who had she been? How did she know about Yami? Why did she know my name? A psycic, maybe? I had my doubts about that, as well. At least it had gotten my mind off of Yami for a little while. I missed him terribly. There's so much that I wanted to say to him. So, so much I wanted to say to him. How sorry I am for letting him go, how grateful I am for having him with me, how happy I am for us to become such close friends. The one thing, though, that was the most important of all of these... was how much I loved him. All of these things, I want to tell him. All at the same time. I just want to tell him everything. I don't want to live with the regret of not letting him know. I wish I could trade everything and anything just to tell him everything I haven't said to him. Anything! I'd willing trade anything to let him know. I... I really would.

The street seemed familiar. I recognized the houses somehow. I looked around, trying to remember where I had recognized this scene before. I'd seen that house before-- and that one! Where was I exactly? Wait, that house looks even more familiar than all of the others. Yeah, that's... that's Ryou's house! That means the house up next is... Oh my gosh, I didn't even realize where I was walking... I didn't want to see Yami's house. I didn't want to be reminded that he wasn't in that house anymore. I fought back tears. I wanted to just pass the house and forget ever passing by it, but I did just the opposite. I walked to the front door of the house and wrapped a hand around the door knob. I immediately froze, wondering if I should just go in. The door is probably locked anyway. Why bother even trying to open the door? Still, I turned the knob and pushed against the door. I was surprised when the door swung open, revealing a dark house. I blinked, stepped inside, and shut the door.

The power was off. That much was obvious. The curtains were shut, and the deep grey coulds weren't helping anything. It wasn't completely pitch black, though. I drew the curtains slightly, the house becoming even barely brighter. I wandered the house a little bit, looking for something-- some_one_. I looked around the living room, around the kitchen, and even in Yami's own bedroom. I didn't find anything, but I didn't leave the bedroom. Yami wasn't here. Not anymore he wasn't. I held back tears and struggled not to let any sobs escape. I was greatly failing at both. I took a deep breath, choking a sob. I fell to my knees and openly let myself cry. Tears fell down my face and onto the carpet. Breathing became more difficult than before. This was the hardest I've cried ever in my life. Usually, people say that the more you cry, the better you feel. Those people are _dead wrong_. I do not feel better by crying; I feel ten times worse than before. The more I cry, the more I'm reminded that Yami is gone. I don't want that. I don't want Yami to be gone. I want Yami to be here with me. Forever. That would make me the happiest. I started mumbling words to myself: "Yami, Yami, please don't be gone... Please come back... Please, Yami...." I choked back a sob. "Yami, please don't leave..." I let myself cry; it's like I wanted to cry, just to get all of these unwanted emotions out of me. The more I cried, though, the more the emotions come back. The more I try, the more it hits me. I took a sharp, shaky breath. "_Yami!_" I screamed out. I didn't care if no one could hear me. I didn't care if Yami himself couldn't hear me. I just needed to remind myself that he wasn't around to hear me. I needed to remind myself he was no longer here. Because no matter what they tell me, no matter what I tell myself, I will never fully believe Yami is gone forever. Because if he were gone forever, I would never know how to deal with myself anymore, or with other people. I'd be a lost soul wandering the earth, looking for a true purpose, looking for Yami. Just like eariler. I was the odd one out from all of those people. The entire house was silent, besides my constant sobbing. I sat on my heels and put my hands over my ears to block out the sounds of my crying. To myself, I repeated Yami's name over and over again, as if trying to get him to come back. I knew it wouldn't work, but I was desperate for Yami to return. Actually, it wasn't even trying to get him back; it was just something to keep me from going insane. I had to say that I was doing a pretty horrible job of it.

When my breathing finally calmed, and when my sobs was ceased to continue, I pulled myself up from the floor and left the bedroom. I was in the living room again, and one look outside revealed that it was almost dark. I remembered my grandpa had told me to be back before dark, and I rushed to shut the curtains and ran out of the house, being sure to shut the door like it had been before. The clouds were still as dark as ever, but there was still some light of day left. I ran along the sidewalk, the icy air stinging the streaks of tears along my face. I ignored it. Suddenly, I stopped. I put a hand to my chest, and I immediately felt the necklace, so I didn't have to worry about that. Still, I took it off quickly and held it tightly in my palm and ran as fast as I could home before the sun could set.

Inside my mind, inside my heart and soul, I felt broken. I felt I had no purpose in life anymore. Yami was my whole life purpose. What do you do if your purpose in life suddenly... disappears? Find a new purpose? Where am I going to find someone as amazing as Yami, someone that's both strong and caring at one time? Where am I going to find someone with a kind heart and gentle smile, yet at the same time a determined stare and a powerful personality? Where am I going to find a person better than Yami? I couldn't. There was _no one_ that could possibly replace Yami. To me, the only possible person that could replace Yami was Yami himself. He was removed from my life, but he could easily slip back in. There was nothing that said that once something leaves, it's gone forever. Wasn't the saying, 'If you love something, set it free. If it returns, it was meant to be.'? Here I am, letting Yami go. Here I am, waiting for him to return. Even if it's only been a day, it already feels like a year since he left. I've had to wait too long. And I'd like to get Yami back before I really do lose all sanity in me. That's my one wish.

I swung the door open, rushing inside the house and quickly shutting the door behind me. I leaned against the door and panted heavily. I made it back before the street lights had turned on. Oh yes, go amazing, depressed me. Yeah. I closed my eyes and tried to find peace once again. The air was warm, unlike outside. The lights were on in the living room, hallway, and kitchen, as far as I could see at the moment. I took my shoes off and set them next to the door before walking into the kitchen, picking a chair, and laying my head down on the table forehead first. I wrapped my arms around my face and hid from nonexistant prying eyes. I held back a strong urge to cry again, and this time, I suceeded. I shut my eyes and tried to drift to sleep.

The sound of scuffling feet along the tile floor kept me from falling asleep. I didn't look up; I knew it was my grandpa. The scraping of a chair across the tile filled my ears, and it sounded a second time. My grandpa is sitting right by me, staring at me and wondering what's wrong with me. I just know it. He sighed boredly. "You're home for two minutes and already I want you out of here so you can find an interesting story about your day!" he said, chuckling loudly. I groaned and hid in my arms tighter. He wasn't helping anything. My grandpa inhaled. "Hmm? You don't sound too happy. Why don't you tell me what's on your mind that's making you so upset?"

No. Absolutely not. I can't tell you anything. "I just don't feel good," I mumbled in my arms. It wasn't entirely a lie; my stomach was aching for some food, since I hadn't eaten today or yesterday. Plus, crying takes up water in the body. I need something to drink.

"Eh? Speak up, Yuugi! I can't hear you when you're talking to your jacket," he said, tapping the back of my head with one finger. I brushed his hand away from me and moved my arm away from my face.

"I said I don't feel good."

My grandpa seemed satisfied enough. "Ah, so that's it. Hungry?" I nodded, rehiding my face. "Well, I'll be picking up food soon, so in the meantime, tell me what's wrong with you. Why don't you feel well? What hurts?"

My heart. My soul. My life. Must I go on? I moved my arms again. "I have a really bad headache, my throat hurts, I feel drowsy, my stomach feels hollow, and I feel dizzy," I said. Well, hey, it's not like I'm lying. All of this is the truth! I really feel sick and horrible. At least I don't have to give an explination why.

"Hmm...." For a minute, he thought. "Alright then. How about you go up to your room and get some well-deserved sleep for a few hours, and I'll wake up when I'm back with food? That sound good?" I nodded, standing up from the chair. My grandpa suddenly had a grimace cross his face. "Oh, Yuugi, you're face looks horrible." Yeah. Thanks. He put the back of his hand to my forehead. "And it seems like you have a fever. Go get some sleep. You need it." I nodded again. Before retreating to my room, I opened the refridgerator and grabbed a can of Sprite from the shelf. Then, I left the kitchen and entered my room.

I couldn't sleep. I had changed into some loose sweatpants, though I never took the jacket off; I wanted to wear it as long as I could while I still had it. My room was dark, outside was dark. It had started to snow, so when I looked out the window I saw small white dots falling gracefully from the sky. As pretty as it was, it didn't help me to fall asleep. The thoughts in my head were so twisted that it was hard trying to find one topic to think of. Things went from Yami to the meeting with the woman earlier. Who was she? Why did she know about myself and Yami? Enough about that. Enough about everything. Why can't I just be at ease for once? Why can't I just be plain Yuugi Mutou anymore? Why do I have to be this.... this.... depressed, angry, emotional, teen that just wants love and has abandonment issues? Why can't my life be like it was two months ago? Actually, why could life be like it was two weeks ago? At least Yami acted like he really did love me then! Now, I don't even know if he _does_ love me! All I really know is that he's gone, and I'm probably never going to be able to talk to him again-

There was a knock at the door, then the door opened without my answer. It was Grandpa. "Yuugi, someone is on the phone for you on the downstairs phone. It's an unknown number and unknown name, so please don't talk to long." I immediately sat up. I jumped out of bed and ran downstairs, ahead of my grandpa. I had the phone in my hand, but I didn't put it to my ear yet. My grandpa was then at the front door with his coat. "I'm going to get dinner, so I'll be back in half an hour. Don't talk too long." The door shut. I couldn't wait to talk to the person, but at the same time, I was scared. I stood a few inches from the wall and pressed the phone to my ear.

"H-hello?" I said nervously, closing my eyes and hoping it was who I wanted it to be.

"_Yuugi? Yuugi, is that you? Is that you on the phone right now, Yuugi_?" The person asked happily. That voice... that familiar baritone voice. Oh my gosh, miracles do happen!

"Y-Yami?! Yami, that's really you?!" I shouted, estatic that I really was talking to Yami. I finally get to talk to Yami! Miracles do happen to the misfortunate souls! I was so happy right now, tears of joy ran down my face and I didn't stop them. "Yami, you don't get how happy I am to talk to you! Where are you calling from?"

There was a small pause. "_I'm in Egypt. Talking from a pay phone. I only had enough money to talk for three minutes, so we have to hurry with what we have to say._" I agreed with him. "_Let me go first. I am so sorry this had to happen. Malik told me everything before we left, and I really wish I had realized it before I even got in the car. Yuugi, I am so, so sorry I did this to you. I can only imagine what pain you must be feeling right now, and it's all my fault. Please, please forgive me._"

I was touched. Yami didn't have to apologize, but what he said... it made me feel so much lighter inside. "Yami, it's all okay, really it is."

"_I hurt you, Yuugi. it will never be okay,_" he commented back, depression in his voice. Wait! This is my chance to tell him my feelings for him! I have roughly about a minute to tell him, so I have to hurry this up. Yami continued, "_If there's a way I could make this up to you, please tell me-_"

"Yami, I need to tell you something. I need to tell you right now," I said, no, commanded. I was going to get this to him, and nothing could stand in my way now. "Please listen to what I have to say."

There was a short pause. "_Yuugi, we only have about fourty-five seconds left. There's no way you could tell me and I could give you a reaction in that time."_

"There won't be enough time if you keep talking! Please... This will only take about five seconds to say. Yami, I..." I trailed off. Here I go. I am going to tell him. Right here, right now. I got my chance. I'm going to suceed this time! "Yami, I love you!" I could hear my heart beat in my ears. My face was a deep red. There was a small silence on the other line.

"_W-what_?" Yami finally said, disbelieving.

"Yami, I love you. I always have loved you. I would explain everything, but there's not enough time." I took a deep breath. "Yami, please tell me if you feel the same way."

I could tell Yami was lost for words. "_Yuugi, I-_"

I guess I never will know if he loves me back. Yami was cut off my an omnious beeping noise. I held the phone deadly in my hand. I finally confessed my love for Yami. Why am I not satisfied? I got no responce. I dropped the phone to the floor and collapsed next to it. I drew my knees up and slammed my back into the wall. I held my face in my hands, and I felt the tears dampening my palms. I choked back a sob. Tears seemed never-ending now. I finally let loose the sobs that I was holding at the back of my throat. Moving my hands, I yelled to the ceiling, "Yami!" I buried my face in my knees and let the tears flow endlessly. I constantly repeated, "Yami, I love you...." to myself. I was now reminding myself that I wasn't loving Yami like I could have been. I not seeing that I'm loving you.

That's what I was trying to do.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Kurisuten: -sobbing and huggling Yuugi again- I-I AM SO SORRY!

Yuugi: -still crying- Yami, come back to me....!

Kishichi: -sniffling- O-okay, well, as started previously, this chapter was started in the middle of the last one. So that's why we were able to get it out so quickly. But this chapter was even more emotional than the last one! And the last one had TONS of emotion! This one, though, had a lot of depression and a crying Yuugi. So, yes, very sorry 'bout that.

Kurisuten: -sniffle- Okay, there are two questions for this chapter. One, **Who do you think the woman was?** And two, **Now that Yuugi has finally declared his love to Yami, is he going to feel better or worse?** Kthx.

Yuugi: A-am I allowed to answer?

Kurisuten: Yuugi-muffin, let reader-chans answer question, kay?

Yuugi: -nod nod-

Kishichi: There were many songs that were going to be used for this chapter. Some of them were "I Miss You (Incubus)", "Far Away (Nickelback)", "I Would've Loved You Anyway (Trisha Yearwood)", and "Here Without You (3 Doors Down)". I have to say that "Here Without You" almost won. After listening to the chapter song, we decided it was WAY more fitting. **Next chapter is second to last chapter.** Don't expect it to be published as fast as this one. J-ja ne, minna-san.

Kurisuten: Review, kudasai. Ja ne, minna-chan.

Yuugi: J-ja...

**A/N: Ah, yes, before I forget (or she'll kill me...), my very very good friend Shecka has a fanfiction in this site and on dA, but it hardly has any love at all! Do me and her both a huge favor and go check it out! Go to my page, look under "Favorite Authors", find someone by the name of "Draco Zelda", and the fanfic is called "The Love of Kyon." It's from the Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, AND it's YAOI! ACTUAL YAOI. So check that out please! Arigatou gozaimasu! ;3**


	20. Far Away

**(Oh my god, yes, I know this was a late chapter. For most of this time I did absolutely nothing except write small portions of this at a time and tried to find ways to get out of the house. I tried to go to Anime Club, but no one could pick me up from it so I couldn't. I tried to get a few friends to drag to the park with me, but no one could. Hell, I tried to go to my boyfriend's house and couldn't, just because no one was here to watch my brother! So, really, I haven't been typing because I don't want to be here. I feel like I'm not doing anything with my life so I've been trying to leave for at least one day and couldn't. So don't complain that I posted this way too late, because my life is a bed of roses right now. Just read the damn story. Kthx.)**

Kurisuten: Here it is. Second to last chapter. Let's all cry together.

Kishichi: Oh come on, you can still cry after the last two chapters?

Kurisuten: Touche. Anyway, I just want to thank all of my reviewers and the readers of this story for sticking with me thus far. I'm surprised you people would want to even read this. The first... four or five chapters are just horrible. Because those chapters, I almost deleted this story! But I had people that liked the way my writing changed. It went from bad to almost flawless (yeah right.) in the matter of a few chapters! I didn't even notice how the writing changed until I re-read the entire story! I thank you guys so-so much for staying with me!

Kishichi: There is a MAJOR time skip in this chapter. The chapter would have been split into two chapters, but that idea was thrown out. Originally, the scene before the time skip would have never happened, but it was a nice idea to add in.

Kurisuten: Remember those questions I put at the end of the chapters? The questions that started in chapter 10? **This chapter answers a few of those.** If you need to, go back and look at the questions, so you know which ones are answered! See if you were right!

Kishichi: Which, most of you probably are anyway.

Kurisuten: Though, some of them didn't have a definate answer. Those are the ones you have to determine for yourself!

Kishichi: Reminder: SECOND TO LAST CHAPTER. Next is the last chapter, then an epilouge and an afterword. So really, there's three chapters left after this. But it's just an epilouge. And an afterword. So they don't count.

Kurisuten: So anyway, enjoy the chapter!

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Christmas is supposed to be a holiday of joy and happiness, right? Christmas is supposed to help you forget your hardships and have a day of caring and giving, right? You're supposed to wake up that morning and have all of your bad feelings completely washed away, right? When I wake up, I should be at least somewhat happy, shouldn't I? I should at least be happy enough to put a real smile on my face when I go downstairs, right?

Every single statement above is false for me.

When I woke up to the sunlight pouring into the window and glinting into my eyes, I couldn't help but feel like a part of me was missing. There was something that used to be there, but now it's gone. It's been like this for at least a week. Today, it was worse. Was it because I was looking so forward to being with him on this day? The answer is yes. I wanted to be with Yami. Today. Everyday. Today was different than every other day. Today... was special.

Waking up was the last thing I wanted to do. I wanted to lie here forever. There was no point in waking up. I'm not saying that I'm going to end up suicidal and kill myself over this. No. No way am I _ever_ going to do that. No, what I'm saying is that I'd rather lie in bed for the rest of my days. Though, that's about as miserable as living the way I am. But hey, I think of it this way: If I go kill myself, and Yami finally returns the day after I do so, wouldn't it be for nothing? Actually, if he comes back _any_ day after I do so, then it would still be for absolutely nothing! Because then I'd be _dead_ without him. A little more miserable than being alive without Yami. But now I'm way off topic.

What was I talking about again?

Ah, right.

If anyone really wanted me to get myself out of bed and go downstairs, they'd come get me. Knowing my grandpa, I won't be laying here for long. Christmas is one of those holidays where he would drag me out of bed to get downstairs. Even my parents used to do that. Well, before they died. And I don't see why. It's just a holiday! I can sleep in as long as I want. Like a weekend, except I actually get presents and whatnot. I don't want anything, though. Therefore, I have no real reason to leave my nice warm bed where I'm at least half happy (Sleep is the one time I can escape reality. Too bad my dreams don't comfort me much either.) to go downstairs and live my horrible life where I'm not happy at all. The only thing that would actually get me out of bed was if Yami walked through the front door.

Or my bedroom door. That would be a lot better. _Much_ better.

I made a small glance at the clock. Only ten o' clock? I think I'll sleep for about three more hours, thank you very much. (Just because I'm miserable doesn't mean I can't add humor in my dialouge.) Obviously, the sun wants me awake; it shone directly though the glass of my window and directly in my eyes. I could barely open my eyes without squinting or blocking my eyes. I placed the pillow over my head to block the sun. It ended miserably. You can't really breathe with a pillow over your head. Sighing loudly, I threw the pillow to the other end of the bed and stepped to the floor. Too tired to yawn, I trudged out of the bedroom and down the stairs.

Upon reaching the living room, I was greeted by my grandpa sitting on the couch. There was one thing that I was thinking when I saw the room: When in the hell did we have a Christmas tree?! There it is, placed right next to the window. I didn't even remember having one. No matter. I walked over to him and sat in the seat next to my grandpa. I placed my hands on my knees and stared at the floor. Neither of us said a word. I hadn't been talking lately, so maybe my grandpa was waiting for me to say the first word. But what could I possibly say? What could I possibly _want_ to say?

"Good morning, Yuugi," he said, a cheerful tone in his voice. I repeated the same sentence back, though never looked up from the floor. "You do know it's Christmas morning, right?" he then asked. How could I forget? This was supposed to be the best day of the year. With Yami. That plan failed. I nodded. He then reached for something, but I didn't know what. "And, I got you something." I told him not to get me anything this year!

I finally looked over at him, and my grandpa held a flat, square-shaped object wrapped in a colorful paper. "Grandpa, you didn't have to get me anything." Still, he held the gift out for me to take. "I really didn't want anything this year." All he did was try to push the gift closer to me. Sighing, I took it. At first, I stared at it like I didn't know what to do with it. I didn't want to open it. I didn't want to even get a present. Finally, I placed a finger under some of the looser paper and pulled it off, trying not to destroy the paper. Finally, a CD case became visible. I read the words on the cover as 'AN Cafe'. A pain stabbed my chest. This was the exact band Yami had gotten me to like, and I wanted their latest album. Now, I wish I hadn't want it. Although, I still put on a fake smile and hugged my grandpa. "Thanks," I was able to say.

"No problem, Yuugi. I overheard you and Yami talk about them, and I knew you wanted this album. Got the last one, I did," he said proudly. I laughed, but only slightly.

I remembered something. "Oh, you saw my present to you, right?" I said. He nodded.

"I opened it before you even got downstairs," he replied. "How'd you know I wanted that book? I don't remember telling you about it."

I smiled sheepishly. "You told me about it the day you found out about it."

"Ah, right! Well, thank you, Yuugi."

Another akward silence.

My grandpa broke the silence by asking, "So, is Yami coming over?" Suddenly, my slow heartbeats felt painful against my ribcage. Before I could answer, he commented, "You haven't actually hung out with Yami in a while. Did something happen between you two?" Oh, yeah, something happened alright. "Did he reject your feelings?" I don't even know. "Is he dead and you're afraid to tell me?" Yami better not be dead. "Yuugi, what happened?" He then interrupted himself. "Actually, answer my first question first. Is Yami coming over here later today?"

I didn't know how to exactly answer. If I say that he is coming over, then he'll realize I wasn't truthful. Either that, or he'll think something's wrong between us. If I tell him that he's not, he'll _still_ assume there's something going on between us. I didn't want my grandpa knowing that Yami was gone! I should have know this would happen. I should have known that he would find out. Why didn't I figure that out earlier? Well, I could tell him that Yami's vacationing with some other family for Christmas- no, wait, that doesn't explain my emotionless void, and that would be something I wouldn't be afraid to tell him. I have no options! I have to tell him everything!

"No, he's not, Grandpa."

"So something happened?"

"Yes, Grandpa."

"Can you tell me?"

No, I can't! But I have to now. What choice do I have now? "Grandpa, do you remember last Friday, when I came home and I seemed sick? And the day after, when I seemed so depressed? And all week, how I'd barely leave my room or talk to anyone?" I took in a shaky breath. "The whole reason for that was because... On Friday, Yami... left." Before my grandpa could ask if he was dead, I continued quickly. "Bakura and Marik-- you know, the tall guys with the white and bronze hair? The tall ones, not short. --took Yami to Egypt. They... didn't want me and Yami to be together. They were trying to make us feel as much emotional pain as they could. I didn't have enough time to stop them. And... I don't know when he's coming back..." I was surprised that I wasn't crying right now. Not even one little tear had ran down my face. That didn't mean they didn't threaten to go over the edge of my eyes.

My grandpa didn't sound like he held anyform of sympathy for me. Instead, he asked, "Is this related to that phone call you got on Saturday?"

I nodded. "Y-yes... Yami called me from Egypt. We only had about two minutes to talk, and I tried to tell Yami my feelings... I did get to tell him though. But... he didn't accept them, nor did he reject them. Right after I told him, the line cut off. I didn't get to hear Yami's responce. That's what kills me the most inside." Am I really opening up to my grandpa, about everything? Was there really nothing I wasn't going to say to him? Out of all of the people I could talk to (Well, if you count Ryou and Anzu as a lot of people.), I pick my grandpa? Anzu has known Yami longer than he has, and Ryou has known Yami longer than that. Why talk to my grandpa? Is it because he understands me the most? Yes, that has to be the most sensible solution. Though, just becaue it's the most sensible solution doesn't mean it's the reason that satisfies me. There's something, right?

He quietly listened to me. I didn't think that he cared much for my situation. He proved me wrong when he said, "Yuugi, I don't think you'll ever understand how sorry I feel for you. I'm so sorry this had to happen to you. I could never want my own grandson to go through this much pain and suffering. I'll never understand the pain you're going through, but I can help ease that pain. All you had to do is talk to me about it."

Talk about it? But that's it. That's just it. There's nothing else to it. I shook my head slowly. "Grandpa, talking about it just makes it harder for me to understand. I don't want to talk about how I want Yami back; I just want Yami to return. It's as simple as that."

"No, Yuugi, it's not as simple as that." I looked at him in confusion. "You've allowed yourself to let all of those emotions you've been feelings bottle up, and soon it'll be more and more difficult to let those emotions go. Why didn't you tell me the day Yami left? What made you hide it from me?"

Why did I hide it from Grandpa? Why did I act like nothing was wrong, even though it was completely obvious that I wasn't just feeling ill. I shook my head again. "I... I really don't know. I was afraid that you would be worried about me. I didn't want you to constantly ask me if I was okay. I was... I was scared you wouldn't think of me as the same grandson that would always come home with a story of my day. I was scared you'd think of me as the depressed kid that you'd never want under the same roof as yours." I was still able to hold in the tears that treatened to push over the rims of my eyes. It was obvious by my tone of voice that I wanted to let those tears go. I couldn't bring myself to do it. All of the things I said were just statements I was thinking at the time. I didn't mean to say them out loud.

Apparently, it wasn't a bad thing I had said what I said. My grandpa put an arm around my shoulder. "What? You thought I'd do all that if you told me? That's what I did when you _didn't_ tell me!" He chuckled. "Yuugi, you thought I wouldn't want you in the same house as me? Why would I want to kick you out? I'm thankful that you have friends like you have! Without them, you'd be more boring than you've been in the past week!" He laughed loudly. I had to smile at that. Grandpa became serious again. "Listen, Yuugi. Yami will come back to you one day. You're just going to have to wait patiently and enjoy the days that pass you when he's gone. Yami's not the person to wait for something to happen on its own; he's going to take action. You told him your feelings. He's going to tell you his. And he's going to be in front of you when he does tell you, whether it be an acceptance or a rejection."

I sat in thought. He was right. He was completely right. He was right about everything! Yami _would_ come back! Yami would come back to tell me! And even if he rejected my feelings, there was no way he'd stop being my friend! Yami wasn't like that! Yami was going to try to come back to stay! Suddenly, the lady from six days ago appeared in my mind. Her words were almost the exact same. In fact, they weren't different at all! I was filled with feelings of happiness once again. I smiled widely and hugged my grandpa tightly. "You're right. I'm so sorry for not telling you this earlier. You wouldn't have had to worry about me so much this week. Thanks so much."

He laughed. "I'm glad you waited to tell me! If you had told me on Friday, I wouldn't have to give you that inspirational speech!" I laughed with him. I had to agree with him.

There was a knock at the door. I walked to the window to peer out and see who was at the door. After looking, I gave a short look to my grandpa, and he gave me a confused look. I didn't hold on expression on my face. I was trying to regester my thoughts. I then walked to the front door, unlocked it, and turned the door knob. I pulled the door open and smiled. "Oh, hi-" I didn't get a chance to finish. He attacked me with the biggest hug of my life. I almost fell to the floor, but I held my balence. "U-uh, can you please get off my, Ryou?"

Ryou looked at me and a look of shock and surprise. "Yuugi! You're smiling! Oh my gosh, I never thought I'd see the day! What happened? Did Yami finally tell you his feelings?! Oh my gosh, Yuugi, I'm so happy for you!"

My grandpa laughed from the couch, and I stiffled a small chuckle myself. "N-no, Ryou. He didn't."

He raised an eyebrow. "Bakura called me on Saturday and said that Yami was going to drop a phone call here when he hung up. I would have thought you'd have tried to tell him your feelings when he called you. What happened?"

I sighed. "Well, I did tell him. There wasn't enough time left in the phone call for him to reply." I didn't wait for Ryou to ask why I was so happy at the moment. "I told my grandpa everything that happened, and he told me Yami would try to come back to the city to tell me his feelings. I know it's true, because that's how Yami is."

"Yup, that's just like Yami." Ryou patted my shoulder. "You've got nothing to worry about there, Yuugi."

My grandpa interrupted by saying, "So, you're going to spend today over here?"

Ryou nodded. "Yup! That was my plan! I was also hoping to cheer Yuugi up, but I guess you've already done that." A small smirk appeared on Ryou's lips. "Though, I can cheer him up even more."

I tilted my head to the side. "Really? How?"

Ryou held out an outstretched hand. In that hand was a tiny red box with a small green bow at the top. I studied it a bit. I noticed it was the same type of box that would hold a ring. Was Ryou proposing to me? Was Ryou giving me a box that Yami was going to use to propose to me? Why the hell am I getting a ring in the first place?! I gave Ryou a puzzled look, but he just held out the box even further. I took the box in my own hand and stared at it. I hoped that I'd suddenly get x-ray vision so I could see the contents of the box before I opened it. Unfortunately, that wasn't going to happen. I put a fingernail under the lid of the box and pryed it open. I slid a finger under the lid and opened the box. Inside was... a key?

"Um, Ryou?" I asked. "Why did you give me a key?"

"It's the key to Yami's house," he replied. I looked up at him immediately. "I had the spare key to his house, and I knew the door had unintentionally been left unlocked. I locked it for myself, then I thought that the key would have much better place in your possesion. So, I guess now Yami's house is like your second home now." He laughed a bit. "I don't think Yami would mind you having the spare key anyway. I'm sure he wouldn't mind you going in his house either. And who knows? You may find something in there that answers your question of whether or not he loves you."

My eyes widened. "W-what?! I'm not going to snoop Yami's house! If anything, I'm just going to check a few things inside the house and leave!"

Ryou looked unamused. "Whatever you say, Yuugi."

In the end, though, all three of us laughed. We knew everything was going to be alright. Even me. I had nothing to worry about now.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

I had been happy. I kept in mind that I had to keep my head up and smile. I knew Yami would return to me. Yami wasn't the type to leave me hanging by a thread and to keep me lying in wait forever. Yes, I was anxious for his return, and I could barely wait. Everyday, I smiled like Yami was still there with me. There was no reason to be sad. There was no reason to not be the same person I had always been before. Not even the bitter cold brought me down. Overall, I was almost the same person I had been before Yami left. It was like he was never gone.

Oh, how those days became ephemeral.

After a span of two months, in early March, I started to grow... impatient? Hmm, it's not the right word, but it'll work. I had started to lose all faith that Yami would return. The smile on my face grew smaller as the days went on. I couldn't hide the absence of Yami. He was gone, and there was no way to get around it. I found it harder to believe Yami would soon come home than to realize that I'd be waiting forever for his return. Although, even after I had started thinking this, for a while I had enough happiness left in me for people to think nothing had been wrong with me. Eventually, I had talked to people less and less. The first person to notice this was Anzu. She had asked me a countless amount of times if I was alright, thought I'd never respond fully; I'd give her a small smile and tell her that I would be fine. Ryou had noticed next. Even though he never asked if I'd been alright, he took note of my glassed-over eyes and dead expression. My grandpa never noticed until I had come home and went straight to my room and not coming out until it was dinnertime. Soon after that, I barely left my room to eat anything! I noticed I was slowly spiraling into a deep depression, and I wasn't going to be able to escape it.

I used to sit in class and pay full attention, looking forward to the future. I used to keep my grades at the top of everyone. I actually made both my teachers and my grandpa proud of me. After a while, though, my mind started to wander away from whatever the teacher was talking about, and I was falling behind on my schoolwork. My grades went from A's to C's in no time at all. When I tried to do my homework, I'd sit at the desk under the window in my room and I'd get frustrated about how I didn't get the concept of the work. I asked Ryou to help me a few times, but the same result would occur; I'd let my mind wander to other things, mainly Yami. I was given no peace of mind at anytime. The habit of never being able to sleep at night returned; I was down to two hours of sleep at most. In fact, I was so tired during the school day, I'd sleep during class when the teacher finally shut up. I knew I should have been paying attention, and I felt a bit bad I was letting people down. I was letting down my grandpa by falling behind in everything. I was letting down Ryou and Anzu by acting so out of character and making them worry about me. I was indirectly letting Yami down for ending up this way. I was letting myself down, because I told myself I'd never get this way again.

I got no phone calls from Yami. I got no letters from Yami. I got nothing from him. A few times, I decided to go inside of Yami's house for the soul purpose of finding something. No, for the soul purpose of finding someone. Each time I entered Yami's house with the spare key Ryou had given me for Christmas, I searched each room for Yami. Though, all I found was a thick blanket of darkness and a new set of tears brimming my eyes. I never did let them fall down my face. I refused to let myself cry. I didn't care if I was alone. I did not want to cry. Crying was a sign of weakness. I wasn't weak; I wanted to prove to myself I was strong without Yami. I wasn't doing a very good job of it, though. If I was really strong without him, then I wouldn't have been so depressed. For some reason, though, I don't care about how depressed I was. Showing weakness was based on crying, for me at least. I would never let myself get that far. I don't ever want to let even one tear fall down my cheek. I was better than that. Wasn't I?

A countless amount of times, I remembered mine and my grandpa's conversation Christmas day. I remembered everything that was said, and I wondered what happened to those words. What happened to standing up, brushing the dust off my pants, and standing tall, showing everyone I wasn't afraid to fall down once in a while? Why couldn't that be me anymore? I've dug a rut for myself, and I haven't found the stregnth to get out or call for help; I was so far down, I didn't think that anyone would hear me, no matter how loud I scream. It was possible to shout loud enough for someone to hear me and help me get out of that rut, but I was too afraid that no one would take the time to get me out. I felt alone. I felt as if a piece of me is gone. That piece of me has a possibility of no return. I'd have a missing part of me that would never be found again. I was the puzzle that no one wanted to put together, because there was a piece missing; there was no point in solving an incomplete puzzle, right?

Some time at the end of January, snow had built up and never left the ground, and the tempurature was a miserable cold. However, those were the days where I could care less how cold it was; I was just enjoying life as if was given to me. By the middle of March, the tempurature was finally warming up, the snow was melting, and the sky had more clouds than sun. That was when my emotions went from one end of the spectrum to the other. I thought it was the lack of sun at first, but it appeared again within the matter of a few weeks. Sun wasn't the problem; the problem was my faith that Yami would return was fading with each passing day. Time was going by so slowly to go with it all. A day felt like a month, a month felt like a year; I'd never want to figure out how long a year would feel like.

The end of the school year was coming close, and I was somehow able to pull up my low D's to high B's. I didn't know how, but I had managed to pull it off. Still, I wasn't satisfied. I would never be satisfied with anything in my life. I have been so far in depression that everyone is more worried about me than ever; everyday when Ryou sees me, he pulls both of my arms out in his full view and checks them thoroughly for scars or cuts. Have I gotten so horribly in a depressed void that people look from my face to the pale flesh under my hands? Each time Ryou would find nothing, but then he always tells me that I can always talk to him if I needed any help. Even this far along the road of lonliness, I would never, ever resort to putting a blade to my skin. I know better than to do that. I have always heard about the people that constantly slash at their wrists and end up in the hospital. I don't want to be one of those people, no matter how things got. Although, I have searched my life for any deep meaning, but I'd find none. Then, I searched my life before Yami left for any deep meaning, and all I found was Yami. My life was-- and is --so centered around Yami, I'm starting to question my dependency on him. Am I really that dependent? Can I really not live peacfully on my own? No, that's not it. I've fallen so in love that I find it too difficult to let him go.

Yami left for Egypt without a definate date of return. Yami was taken away from me with no promise of early return.

That was six months ago.

That's right. It's June the eighteenth now. It's no longer December. It's no longer winter. It's almost summer. Exactly six months since Yami left.

Oh, and here's a faboulous detail I left out. They found out who murdered the two Kaiba's. Were they Bakura or Marik? No, they were completely different people.

What a coincidence?

I think not.

Since Wednsday, there have been the final exams for classes, each day having two classes. The school day was cut in half instead of a full day. So, for example (for all you slow folk out there.), Wednsday had hours one and two, and the school day started at seven and ended at eleven. Get it? I'm not explaining again. It has finally Friday, meaning it was the very last day of both horrid exams and the school year. This had to be the single-handedly happiest day of my life. Well, sort of. School was one of those things in my life that made me dread waking up in the morning. Now that it's ending, I feel like some of the weight on my shoulders has drifted away. But school was the least of my worries anyway.

I didn't expect it, but I was able to finish the test in no time at all, which meant that I had a full hour and fifteen minutes to myself. I looked around at the other students, seeing who had finished; I was the first one done. Even Ryou, who because of the stupid seating chart was four seats in front of me, hadn't finished. There wasn't much to do anymore, was there? I had no extra paper to draw, let alone any inspiration. I didn't have a book to read, not that I wanted to read anyway. I had absolutely nothing I could do right now. I yawned quietly. Well, I've found something to do. I folded my arms on my desk and layed my head behind them, shutting my eyes and trying to find sleep.

How long would I have to wait for Yami? Just how long? Shouldn't six months be enough torture? I had so many questions to ask, it made my head spin. Marik, Bakura... why won't you let him return? Malik, why can't you help Yami leave? Ryou, how could you let yourself fall for Bakura's lies? Anyone who'd listen, why can't you help me? There was one question that didn't relate to the others, but it was still most important to me. Yami... do you love me like I do?

An annoying buzzing noise, then a tap to my arm, woke me up from my light sleep. I opened my eyes and looked around to see students standing up quickly and exiting the classroom quickly. I looked up next to me to see Ryou, staring down at me with concern. I looked away from him, rose from my seat, grabbed my backpack, and left the room with Ryou. I didn't speak to him. He didn't speak to me. I think he knew I wasn't up to talking and respected that. Though, there was a part of me that wanted him to talk to me. And yet, I still walk in complete silence, Ryou doing the same. The halls were much noisier, though. People running to the exit while screaming happily that thier nightmare ended for another year (or the rest of their life, depending on what the grade level was.). It sort of made me feel like an outcast, though; I was silent, not having one bit of emotion on the fact that school is finally over. I could care less about that. Right now, my mind is more of a blank slate than anything.

The sun was warm, I noted as I stepped out into the open air. The air is nice, too. Who cares about that? Well, actually, I think it's pretty nice outside, so I wasn't really complaining much. Or saying how much I don't care about the world. I do care about the world! Because somewhere out there in the world is Yami and at least I'm in the same world as him. _Hopefully._ Ugh, I try to add humor to horrible situations and I just bring myself down. Yeah, I'm great. But anyway. Ryou and myself still walked along the sidewalk in complete silence, as if unknown of each other's presence. Overall, though, it was very peaceful with the silence and all. Still, I can't help but feel like something would happen. Something...

"Hey, Yuugi," Ryou finally said, not looking at me and keeping his voice low. I hummed as a responce. "Are... you okay?" Well, this is new. When was the last time he asked if I was alright? As far as I knew, he never has for the longest time.

With a monotone voice, I replied, "Ryou, do you seriously have to ask if I'm okay to know if I am or not? You should know by now. You should already know that I'm not."

Ryou sighed. "I know, Yuugi. I just wish you'd at least try to get over it."

It was at that point I wanted to yell in his face that I was never going to fully get over it, but I could control my anger quite well now. I've learned to hold in my emotions. "I've already tried to get over it, and you know it," I said, my tone not changing. "I don't know what happened, though. I just let everything slip away and now I'm this."

"I wish you'd try harder." Ryou's voice was cold, not even trying to comfort me anymore. "All you're doing is hurting yourself and everyone around you. Don't you get that? I really wish you'd at least try to get over everything and just be the Yuugi you were a few months ago."

I was becoming angrier, and some of that anger had slipped in my voice. "Don't _you_ get how torn I am about this?" I walked faster, passing Ryou. "I don't think you do."

What happened to me? What happened to the Yuugi that was quiet, innocent, and acted like a schoolgirl when it came to crushes? Where did he go? I missed that part of me. Though, that part of me was brought out by Yami. Everything I was before was brought out by Yami. How-- or why --does everything go back to Yami? Is all of this Yami's fault, and not actually Marik and Bakura's? No, that's not it. Did I develop schizophrenia when Yami left, because I'm starting to get worried about my arguing with myself thing. Okay, all I need is to calm myself down and get some well-deserved sleep. If I could sleep, that is.

Ryou called after me, "Wait, Yuugi!" He ran a little faster to catch up to me. "Yuugi, I didn't mean to say that. I'm really sorry."

I shook my head. "Ryou, don't apolozige. I should be saying sorry."

He left it at that. Ryou couldn't find anything worth saying to me at this point. We've figured out that I was an emotionless pit of depression. We've figured out that nothing could save me. Except Yami. And who knows how long it would be until I wouldn't be the two things I just mentioned.

Well, there's my house. The same house I refuse to leave. I turned to walk up the driveway and made a small wave to Ryou. He mumbled a small 'see ya' as he continued to walk straight ahead. I feel guilty. I feel like I'm losing more of me with everything I say or do. Yet, I'm discovering more and more reasons to let my bottled-up feelings go. So why couldn't I? Sighing heavily, I opened the front door and stepped into the familiar house. My grandpa, who had just walked down the stairs, greeted me with a hopeful smile.

"So, excited that school's finally over?" he asked, taking a step toward me. I kicked my shoes off in the same place by the foot of the stairs and walked past him, trudging up the steps. Grandpa turned to face me and waited patiently for a responce.

Without looking at him, I replied, "Yeah." The conversation ended with that as I walked away.

I stepped into my room and tossed my backpack at the desk, it landing next to one of the legs lifelessly. I wouldn't be needing it anymore, and I was able to admit that I was happy about that. Yet, I couldn't bring myself to be happy. I threw myself onto my bed and stared at the ceiling. The same ceiling I stared up at everyday, every night. The same ceiling that I'd search the patterns for answers and never could find them. The same ceiling that mocked me in a way that made me regret staring at it in the first place. Nonetheless, I'd stare at it as if it would do something miraculous if I continued to stare at it. I sighed, closing my eyes. What could I do? I felt defeated. Why do I feel defeated in the first place? For what reason can't I stand up and take a punch and brush it off like it was nothing? Why am I doing this to myself? So many questions buzzed in my head that I didn't have answers to. How confused I am.

From downstairs, I heard a frantic knocking at the front door. I didn't know who had arrived, and I didn't care much about who it was. Despite this, I still held my breath in hopes of hearing the conversation that would start when Grandpa opened the door. I heard the door open and a rapid voice talking to him. I recognized the voice immediately. Please tell me this isn't happening. My grandpa tried to make him slow down with his talking, but it hadn't been working. He requested to see me, and not even five seconds later my grandpa was yelling up the stairs that I had a visitor. I took a deep breath before standing up and exiting my room to downstairs.

As soon as I appeared, Ryou tackled me to the ground. My grandpa laughed, and I shot a small glare at him. I pushed Ryou off of me and stood up, brushing off my pants. "Ryou, what was that for? I swear, you dislocated my back or something," I snapped, stretching.

Ryou shook my shoulders. "Yuugi! Yuugi, I forgot to tell you something super important! I need you to come with me right-right now!" What could be so important? Before I could ask, he dragged me out of the house and toward his house. Wait a second, I was still wearing socks! I struggled to get out of Ryou's grasp.

"Ryou, let me go! I'm not wearing shoes!" It seemed like Ryou didn't hear me. "Ryou, let go of me, I'm serious!" What is Ryou's problem?! Is he trying to ignore me? "Ryou! Come on, let me go right now!" Now I was just shouting protests more to myself than to Ryou. I growled. "Ryou, I'm not kidding! Let me go! What's wrong with you? What's so frigging important?! Ryou, let go of me!" Whether he heard me or not, I was still being dragged to Ryou's house for whatever reason. "Someone better be dying, Ryou! This better not be for nothing!"

Well, Ryou heard that one. He looked over his shoulder and said, "Oh, trust me! This is _super very_ important!"

Yeah, it better be.

When we got to Ryou's house, I was slightly disappointed; I almost expected to see the shiny red car owned by Malik with Yami standing there waiting for me. Unfortunately, no such thing existed. He dragged me into the house and quickly shut the door before dragging me to the couch. Confused, I sat down, wondering what Ryou had to say. A sudden thought came into my head; what if Yami really _was_ here? What if the car was just hidden? So many hopeless thoughts.

I stared at Ryou. "Okay, what am I doing here?"

Ryou sat-- okay, more of jumped --onto the couch and had a glitter in his eye. "So, about three weeks ago, I was changing my bedsheets--"

"Not sure how important this is," I interrupted.

"Gah, shut up!" Ryou snapped. "I was taking off the pillowcase and stuff and you would not believe what I found inside of it!" Before I could answer, Ryou continued. "I found a note from Bakura!"

I was silent. Was that it? What was the meaning of telling me this? Disappointed, I replied, "How the hell is that important? I don't get it. Did I miss something?"

Ryou shook his head frantically. "No, no! The note from Bakura said something you'd want to hear!" I suddenly straightened my back and directed my attention to Ryou. "It said that Yami and everyone else would come back if and only if I sent them a relpy letter to an address inside the note! And I did as soon as I read it!" My eyes widened. Ryou couldn't be serious! There's no way!

"N-no way..." I muttered. "Let me see the note! I want to see if you're serious!" I reached forward and grabbed Ryou's hands, smiling widely. I was so happy right now. Yami was going to come back to me!

Ryou gasped, smiling just as wide as me. "Oh my gosh, Yuugi! You're smiling!" I nodded. Ryou stood up. "I'll go find the note right now!" he said, running off into the hallway and disappearing from sight. As he was gone, I noticed a light feeling in my chest; I finally felt hopeful. I finally felt like I wasn't waiting around for nothing. Yami was going to come back! He was... Yami was going to finally come back. I've never felt more happy in my life. It felt good to feel alive, as if I were flying, as if nothing could touch me. How great this was...

I jumped when Ryou returned, jumping onto the same spot on the couch he had been before, holding a folded piece of blue-lined paper. I pointed to the paper. "Is this the note?" Ryou nodded, handing it to me. I snatched it and unfolded it as quickly as I could. There they are; there are the words that helped bring my hopes up. The handwriting was very messy and barely ledgible, but I managed.

_Ryou,_

_So you found the note. Didn't think it would happen. Anyway, Marik and me decided to give Yuugi a second chance to be with Yami. We aren't totally evil. In fact, we'll let Yami return. All you've gotta do is send a reply to this note to the address at the bottom of the page. Then when we get it, we'll ship everyone (including Yami) back with no problems at all. Let's see how fast you can send it._

_Bakura_

Below his name was the address Bakura had mentioned. I skimmed the address, then re-read the note over and over again. I couldn't believe it. Yami was going to come home! This wasn't a joke! Ryou wasn't lying. Yami was going to finally come home, no strings attached. I was so excited. I was more than that. Then, a few things entered my mind that were worth considering.

"Ryou, why didn't you tell me this when you _found _the note?" I asked.

Ryou rubbed the back of his head, smiling sheepishly. "Well, I sort of forgot."

I rolled my eyes, smiling. "What a surprise." My face became serious again. "Ryou, you sent the reply letter the day you found it, right? That was exactly three weeks ago. You sent it then, right?" Ryou nodded. "It doesn't take more than three weeks to get a letter a few thousand miles away. Bakura said he'd let Yami come back as soon as they got the letter."

"Yeah, well," he said, "you have to remember that maybe they don't have the money to get four plane tickets-- or even one --to come back. Maybe they still have to get the money."

"Ryou, Bakura must have had a way to get Yami here if he said that they'd all come back as soon as they got the letter."

He sighed. "Yuugi, Bakura is Bakura. He obviously knew he couldn't come back as soon as they got the letter. And even if they were able to come back right then, they obviously weren't going to leave then. You know Bakura. He's going to try to make you miserable."

I stared at the floor. Ryou had a good point. Well, they probably got the letter by now, so I don't have to wait much longer for them to finally come back. I slowly led my eyes up until something caught me; on the coffee table at the top of a stack of envelopes was a small white envelop addressed to Ryou, as with all of the others. Though, this one was different. The return address was the same address listed on the note Bakura left for Ryou. I looked at Ryou. "The letters on the table... were they from today?"

Ryou drew his eyebrows together. "Yeah, they are," he said, nodding. My heart pounded in my chest. I brought my attention back to the envelop, and I reached out to grab it. I held it in my fingers. "Yuugi, what's wrong?" he asked, looking at the envelop. Seeing the return address, he gasped, taking it for himself. He tore it open and took out the single sheet of paper inside. He read the words quickly, his expression growing more and more shocked as he read.

"What? What is it?" I said, concerned about what might have been written on the paper. It was known for Bakura (and Marik) to want to ruin my life. What if... What if they said that they lied and Yami wasn't going to come back? What if it was from Yami? What if Yami said he wasn't going to come back? Fear filled my thoughts. "R-Ryou, let me see the letter!" I exclaimed, taking the letter and holding it in front of me. The handwriting was recognized as Bakura's. I skimmed the words to look for the important part of the letter. I got to a certain line toward the bottom of the page that had it's own special line, spaced out from the words above and below it. I stared at it, refusing to believe what I was reading. All feelings of hope and happiness left me. I couldn't believe it. Those three words... They threatened to tear me up from the inside out.

_Yami was murdered._

No. No, Yami couldn't be dead. There was no way... No...

Ryou put a hand on my shoulder. "Yuugi... Yuugi, I'm so sorry..."

Without looking at him, I said, "Ryou, didn't you say that Bakura tries to ruin my life all of the time? Didn't you say that he would do anything to get me to be miserable?"

Ryou blinked. "W-well, yeah, but-"

"So isn't there a big possibility that Bakura is lying about this to ruin my life?"

He shook his head. "Yuugi, I've know Bakura for what feels like forever. No matter how evil his intentions could be, he would never lie about something like this. I know he said that him and Marik were the ones that murdered Seto and his little brother, but he wouldn't lie about someone that close to him dying. Yami may not seem that close to him or Marik, but in reality, they're actually very close. Bakura wouldn't lie about that." I held my breath; I didn't blink. There was no way.... Yami couldn't be.... Bakura has to be.... No.... I set the letter on the table in front of me and stood up. Without a word, I walked toward the front door and opened it. "Yuugi," Ryou said cautiously, "where are you going?"

I took a look at him. "Just going for a walk."

"_Where_ are you going." There was no question to this; this was a cold, hard statement.

Taking a step out of the house to get a headstart, I said, "You know that bridge just a few blocks from here by the boat dock? The one right over the water passway?" I left it at that. That was all I needed to say for Ryou to know what I was talking about. Ryou stood up to try to follow me and tried to call me back, but I was already out of the house and running toward my said destination. I ignored all of Ryou's attempts to get me back. I was going to that bridge. I was going to do what Ryou had suspected me of doing. At this point, I didn't even need to say what I was going to do.

I was going to jump.

I ran past houses, cars, people. I ran past life itself. The vision of six months ago appeared in my mind. I had ran past many houses, many cars, many people, to try to stop Yami from leaving. And to think I almost succeeded. If only I had run a little faster. Then, I ran faster. I knew from experience that you had to run faster to succeed with your goal. You had to run faster to get there in time. Knowing Ryou, too, my time limit was running slim. Who knew what Ryou was going to do. Who knew who he'd call. My grandpa? The police? The Mental Health Hotline? With Ryou, I could never know. Maybe he was going to try to stop me himself. And we both knew that Ryou was the faster runner between us. Come on, Yuugi, move those little feet of yours!

I could feel pebbles and small rocks jab the bottoms of my feet through my socks, and I could have sworn I stepped in some glass at one point. Still, I didn't slow down or stop running even for a moment. I've been dealing with a worse pain than this. I'd last. I took a quick glance behind me to see if anyone had been following me; all I found was a trail of blood drops that grew smaller with my footsteps. So I _had_ stepped in glass. No problem. Wounded feet were the least of my worries.

I stumbled a few times, but I haven't actually fallen yet. What a surprise. I'd think with the way and pace I had been running, I would have fallen at least once. I must be lucky. No, I wasn't lucky. I felt like the most misfortunate person on the planet. To think that those bottled-up emotions had left me the second that I read that note Bakura left Ryou. No, no, they only hid themselves, then returned twice as heavy as before. Crying had to be the hardest thing not to do right now. You'd think that by now I'd have tears streaming down my face because Yami was dead. You'd think I wouldn't be so twisted as to jump off a bridge into the seemingly bottomless waters below it. Looks can be so decieving, can't they?

By car, if it was going the speed limit, it would probably take at least fifteen minutes to get to the bridge from Ryou's house. I had been running the entire time, and I had been running my full speed, yet I felt like time was going be so slowly. The world was disappearing so quickly behind me, but time had been slowed down in front of me. It was like it didn't matter if the world was passing quickly or not as I ran, because the fabrics of time didn't depend on the speed of the world. It was like time was teasing and mocking me. At the moment, time and fate were the enemies.

There it is; there's the bridge, just ahead and to the left. Without hesitation, I ran faster toward it. I dashed quickly across the road without waiting for the road to be cleared of passing cars. Surprising how I haven't died by getting hit by a car. Yes! I was now on the same road as the bridge. Come on, just a little bit more, run just a little more. It was so difficult to keep running. My lungs and chest felt like they had been lit with a match. I was finding it difficult to breathe. Still, I ran the last half-mile to get to the bridge. The path to the bridge would soon have multiple police cars surrounding it with crime-scene tape blocking the entrance to it. I could picture it, yet I couldn't think of it as the best of thoughts. As if I care what would happen here within the next hour. All I care about is what was trying to accomplish.

I finally made it. I was right in the middle, right at the top, of the bridge. I hunched over with my hands on my knees, trying to catch my breath. My heartrate must have been beating so fast it sounded like a buzzing noise. The heat didn't phase me, either; I didn't care about everything else. I glanced around me to discover that there was no one around. No one was on the road, no one was following me in the distance. Perfect is all I can say. Feeling like I rested enough, I stood upright once again.

I walked toward the edge of the bridge and looked over the one and a half meter tall wall separating me from the water. The way down was much farther than I thought. I gulped. Was I really going to go through with this? This didn't seem like me at all. Me, Yuugi Mutou, commiting suicide? Uch, I hate that word. It seemed so... dark. But, I never thought I could put that word in the same sentence as my name. Unless the sentence is 'Yuugi Mutou would never commit suicide for any reason.'. Why is it now, as I look over the edge of my death, I start to want to back out of what was my idea in the first place? No, I didn't run here for nothing. Get on the edge of the small concrete wall right now and fall. Fall into the water. Do it.

So many voices in my head... which one do I believe? The one telling me to go back to Ryou and apologizing for scaring the shit out of him? Or the one telling me to jump over the edge of the bridge for the sake of being with Yami? I went over the pros and cons of each. If I go back, then I wouldn't put feelings of depression over my friends and my grandpa, but I would be stuck with living without Yami (which wouldn't be so bad in the first place if I knew how Yami felt about me!). Although, if I commit suicide, then I could spend an eternity with Yami and wouldn't have to deal with the pain of being without him. Though, I would also hurt the others around me. And I couldn't put myself over them.

Do it, a voice in my head hissed. Step on this ledge right now and jump. Do it now before you're stopped by someone.

I took a deep breath. I pressed my palms to the concrete wall and pushed myself from the ground. I carefully swung a leg onto the top of the wall before rotating myself onto my backside. I put the other leg onto the wall and, making sure I didn't lose balance, stood up on the concrete barrier, facing the water below me. I stared down at what I would soon fall into. The way down seemed so much farther down, even though I only became a few feet higher than before. I tried to calculate the distance from here to the bottom, but I was lost in my sea of thoughts. Was this really worth it? The voice telling me to jump hissed my my ear once again, and I tried to shift my weight to the water below me. I discovered something, though. I couldn't do it.

Instead of a step forward, I took a step backward. My cut-up feet hit the sidewalk and I placed my folded arms on the top of the barrier I was just about to jump off of. My forehead layed on my folded arms. "I can't do it..." I said with a shaky voice. "I can't do it..." Somehow, I knew this would happen. Why did I waste so much of my time doing this if I knew I wouldn't be able to jump in the first place? So much of my life has been wasted, but this had to be the most wasteful thing I've done yet. What the hell was I thinking?

I stood up fully again, staring at the ground. "Might as well go back," I mumbled to myself, turning to the direction I had ran before. Though, just as I put one foot in front of the other, something caught my eye. It was a folded note on blue-lined paper. I wouldn't care as much if it didn't have my name written on the side that was face up in purple ink. Out of all of the things to be running the show, why was it a series of notes? Still, I bent down and picked up the paper. For a moment, I just stared at it. Carefully and slowly, I unfolded it to read the contents of it. Time seemed to be in slow motion. I was so anxious to read the note I was trembling. When the note was finally opened, I drew my eyebrows together. I recognized the words on this. There were two people's handwriting on this. They were... myself and Ryou's handwriting! This was the note that I passed to Ryou! The one I lost! What was it doing all the way out here? Actually, better question; how is it still here?! Then, I gasped.

Something new was written on it.

Right next to one of the sentences I wrote.

There, in purple ink, next to the line that read, 'I kissed Yami.', had the shocking two words,

_I know._

My eyes widened. Who knew? Who found the note and read it? Where is the person now? Are they behind me?

My question was almost immediately answered when a person standing behind me, though they weren't directly behind me, cleared their throat. It was a male that was behind me, I knew that. "Yuugi," he said. There was an emotion I couldn't read in his voice, but I recognized both the voice and emotion. I looked up and spun around. I gasped and covered my mouth with both hands, letting the paper flutter to the ground graciously. He stood there, hands in his pockets, a playful yet comforting smile crossing his mouth, and eyes with a soft gleam in them. Finally, after six long months, I could feel tears run down my cheeks and line the outside of my hands. Is this a dream? Is this really happening? He spoke again, the same emotion coating his voice. "Been far away for far too long."

I moved my hands from my mouth, holding them together and pressing them to my chest. Tears were flowing endlessly by now, but I was too wrapped up in the moment to stop them. Then, I whispered one word that I was so used to saying, thought it felt like such a forgein word to me now.

"Yami..."

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Kurisuten: HAHAHAHA CLIFFHANGER! I am so evil, I love it!

Kishichi: ...wait, weren't you just angsty about how your parents are the reason you have no social life?

Kurisuten: Pft, I'm going to his house tomorrow hopefully anyway. Plus, I'm going to see him at school on Monday anyway. What, you think I can't handle four days without seeing him? Jeez, I'm not that weak!

Kishichi: -_-

Kurisuten: But enough about my personal life. Yes! After two long weeks I finally updated the story! At first, I was just going to let the story hang for a little bit before I updated, but then I became really lazy and it was only small pieces an portions a day. Hell, some days I didn't even open the chapter! But today, I realized I didn't want to die in my sleep by the Puzzleshipping fanbase that reads this so I typed the rest of this!

Kishichi: Because dying is no fun.

Kurisuten: Of course not! Dying sucks! That's why I decided to let my two favorite YuGiOh lovebirds live! -peace-

Kishichi: ...special.

Kurisuten: Oh, you're just mad because I didn't save any leftovers from Thursday for you. Remember that note from chapter 12 that Yuugi and Ryou were passing? Guess who fitted that into the later plot? I DID! I decided that the note needed a purpose in the later chapters, because what good is a useless note? That's why I keep every note I pass. Not that they'll matter much later.

Kishichi: Plus, the chapter said that Yuugi didn't have the note, even after he made sure he saved it. The only other person to have gotten the note was Yami, and that had to be put into here. And saying in the last chapter, "Oh, yeah, Yuugi, I still have that note that you asked me about forever ago." wouldn't fit the story at all! Plus, this had a much deeper meaning than that.

Kurisuten: Aren't I smart? QUESTION TIME! Hmm, I didn't think of a question for this chapter... Well, besides "what do you think of the fact that Yuugi almsot because suicidal?"..... Oh, I got it! **What do you think would have happened if Yuugi actually did jump?** Yeah, yeah, not a very good question, but it was all I could come up with without spoiling the ending!

Kishichi: Anyway, the next chapter will be the last chapter, then the epilouge, and finally the afterword. And who knows, maybe ever after that, you'll get a special chapter! Like maybe an alternate ending or something even more special! Keep reading and sending your feedback and you will definately get a special chapter!

Kurisuten: No lie! Please review! Ja ne, minna-chan!

Kishichi: Ja! -waves-


	21. Everything

**(LATE CHAPTER IS NOT LATE.**

**XD Okay, so I've been busy with schoolwork. And got a small case of writer's block. And I went to this anime convention at a library on Saturday. Trust me, I've been UBER busy lately! I'm so sorry I updated so slowly like this. ^^;)**

Kurisuten: LAST REAL CHAPTER! *sobs*

Kishichi: Do I need to go find an uke for you to huggle and cry with?

Kurisuten: N-no, I'll be okay.

Kishichi: ...I hope so.

Kurisuten: I've said this so many times before, but THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH FOR STAYING WITH ME THIS LONG! Through every plot twist and cliffhangers (which are not that many.). It makes me so happy that this is my most popular story yet! Though, I feel like I don't deserve it. There are so many awesome stories out there that get one or two reveiws and it makes me sad that THIS is popular. O.o But I still thank you guys so much. ^^

Kishichi: Yeah, at least people read this.

Kurisuten: Quit being angsty! **I** have more emotion than you!

Kishichi: ...I know.

Kurisuten: Over a hundred and twenty-five reviews later and here it is! The last actual chapter! Then you get an epilouge, afterword, and if you stay with me long enough, a super special awesome mega ultra chocolately-coated super chapter! -peace-

Kishichi: Abridged reference?

Kurisuten: That would be so.

Kishichi: Anyway, this is the chapter that you might cry, laugh a little, then cry some more. NO, there are no deaths. Even though we ALL want to kill Kura and Marik for being total asses. I mean, they almost indirectly killed Yuugi! Grr, Ryou better kick Bakura's ass for this.

Kurisuten: Or Yami could just mind crush their ass.

Kishichi: It's an alternate universe. He can't do that.

Kurisuten: Hey! I have the authoress power to do it! Whatever I say goes! And I say Yami gets his epic mind crush powers-

Kishichi: YOU CANNOT DO THAT!

Kurisuten: -crosses arms- Whatever. Enjoy the chapter.

**(Oh! And by the way, I also based this chapter off of a song! Everything by Lifehouse!**

**And another thing! Instead of the usual MarikxMalik and BakuraxRyou thing that's usually in my chapters, I've put in some hints of MalikxRyou. So. Don't say I didn't warn you. Because I did. Plus, I've been wanting to do this since ever. XD**

**That's it! Happy reading!)**

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

"Yami..." I whispered. Was this happening? Was Yami really here? I... I don't know what I should do right now. All I can think to do is stand here in shock. I need to know if I'm dreaming. I need to know that I really wasn't dead. I held one arm out in front of me, as if trying to reach out to Yami. "Yami, is... is that really you?"

He chuckled. "Don't tell me you forgot what I looked like after six months. Kinda hard to, since I look almost exactly like you," he said, walking toward me. He took my arm and pushed it to my side, leaving room for him to stand in front of me. "I take that you missed me, right?" It... it really was Yami. Yami was really standing in front of me. Out of my disbelievment, I reached both arms out and wrapped them around Yami's waist, hold myself close to him. I missed holding him. I'd almost forgotten what his touch felt like. Now, I have just remembered how safe I felt. I buried my face in his shirt, letting myself cry after so long. I moved my hand higher up his back. Yami didn't respond at first; though, he put his own arms around me and pulled me close to him. I didn't know how to stop crying anymore, even if I didn't want to stop in thie first place. Because I was finally happy.

"Yami, Yami, Yami..." I repeated, as if he wouldn't be here anymore if I didn't. He pulled me closer and slightly swayed back and forth, whispering comforting words to me. This would seem like the saddest moment for me to most, but it's the complete opposite. To me, this was the single-handedly the best moment ever. Plus, don't they say that it can never get worse, only better?

In my ear, Yami whispered, "Yuugi, I'm here now. You don't have to worry anymore." Worry? How can I be worried right now? I must be the happiest person alive right now! I wanted to tell him that, but I was wordless. I couldn't find the words to say my thoughts with. Though, I knew how to say a few other things that I wanted to tell Yami.

I pressed my ear to Yami's chest, still letting tears roll down my face. I loosened my hold on Yami, though never letting go of him. "When did you get here?" I asked quietly.

"Just around ten minutes ago, actually. I wasn't even fully out of the car when Ryou told me you ran all the way out here, and he suspected you were going to jump off the bridge. Malik drove me over here as fast as he could, and when we got here you were climbing on the edge. I ran all the way over here to try to stop you, but somehow I knew you weren't going to jump so I didn't do anything. I dropped the note on the ground and stepped away to wait for you. And, well, here we are now." Yami cares about me that much? He really did? Yami then asked me, "Why were you going to jump in the first place, Yuugi? What possesed you to try to pull a stunt like that?"

I could feel more and more tears falling from my eyes. "R-Ryou got a letter from Bakura that said you were.... that said you were dead... I didn't know how to handle something like that, and Ryou said Bakura would never lie about that! S-so..."

Yami quieted me. "Yuugi," he said in a serious tone. Was he... mad? Was he mad at me? "You don't have to worry about anything. I'm not dead. I'll never leave you like that. Please don't worry about anything anymore, because I'm here now." My eyes widened. Did Yami mean all of that? Did he really mean all of what he just said? He really means it? I closed my eyes tightly to try to stop tears from falling.

"Yami..." I gripped the back of his shirt tighter. I then remembered something that I had been meaning to ask. "Yami, how long have you known?" I asked quietly. "About the kiss, I mean. How long did you know about that?"

He chuckled. "Yuugi, I've known since the day you did it." I looked up at him in confusion. "I never really was asleep then. I knew you went over to me and kissed me. I was never asleep then."

"So why didn't you wake up when I did that?"

"I didn't want to scare you. I'd known that you wanted to kiss me ever since the accidental one, but never knew how to." Yami ran a hand through my hair. "It's alright, Yuugi, I understand that."

I was silent. I have always wanted to hear Yami say those words to me. I truly have never been happier in my entire life. My dream come true... it was finally unravelling in front of my eyes. But... was all of it going to come true, or would those stay a dream? I held Yami tighter. "Yami... I've never been happier than I have right now. I'm just... I'm just so happy you're finally back. A-and I've been hoping you'd say what you just said for the longest time. This... this completely makes up for the six months of time I lost with you. It really, truly does, Yami." I was pretty much confessing everything to Yami right here without even a second thought. But hey, I've already told him my feelings. I might as well confess the rest, right? I mumbled, though more to myself than to Yami, "My dream come true..."

"Hn?" Yami hummed. "Your dream come true? What would that be, Yuugi?"

Without any hesitation, I replied, "You. You being here, holding you close to me like this. You telling me all of this. Me standing here with you. Me not having to worry about you leaving. Us, together, forever." I paused. Do I really want to say the rest? Yuugi, you aren't the shy, timid boy with a cute little crush you used to be! It's time to completely let go of that. "Though, there's one part that hasn't come true yet... Even if it didn't, though... I'd still be the happiest person in the world." Tears were falling one by one, like soldiers. I don't care about my tears anymore. How can I? I have better things to care about. I mean, Yami's here, isn't he?

Yami's fingers tangled themselves within my hair. "But would you be happiest if _all_ of it came true?"

I nodded. "Yes... I would be..."

"Then, Yuugi, since I've made it my life purpose to make you happy, would you mind if I made the rest of it come true?"

Drawing my eyebrows together, I looked Yami in the eye. "Yami, what are you..." I trailed off and noticed Yami was drawing closer to me. I gasped, and Yami captured my lips with his own. My eyes widened. Yami was... We were... I never thought this moment would finally happen, especially at this specific point in time. I... I liked it. My wide eyes drifted shut, and I stood on my toes to allow myself to lean into the kiss more. My arms moved to snake around Yami's shoulders. His hands were placed softly on my hips. This was a light kiss, but it held so much feeling. It was the most amount of feeling I had ever felt. And I loved every bit of it.

The seconds passed quickly, a little too quickly. Much to my diappointment, Yami finally pulled away. He stared deep in my eyes, and I discovered an unknown emotion. Could it be the same emotion I couldn't figure out before? Speaking lowly, he said, "I remember what you said to me over the phone the day after I , I just want to tell you that I return those feelings." Just those words alone made my heart leap. I knew what Yami was going to say next, but I longed to hear him say them to me. A familiar warmth rose to my face as Yami spoke once again. He cupped my cheek in his hand. "Yuugi, I love you." New sets of tears filled my eyes. I never thought I'd get to hear Yami say those words to me. I was so shocked, but I was so happy. All because I finally know one hundred percent that Yami loves me. As the tears spilled down my cheeks, Yami gained a worried look, wiping away a few tears with his thumb. "Yuugi, why are you crying?"

Once again, I pulled myself into a tight embrace with him again. "B-because," I stammered, "I love you, too. I've never been happier in my entire life. Ever. I loved you before, I love you now, and I'll love you forever." Yes, I know this is the best moment in history for me, but why must I start saying such cheesy lines? Just forget that. Yami lifted my face again and pulled me closer to his own face. Our lips were barely centimeters apart. Tears still slowly rolled down my cheeks. My breathing was slightly uneven. Yami moved both hands into the same place they had been before on my hips. My own arms had found place around Yami's neck. For a few seconds, we continued to stare into each other's eyes, trying to read the other's mind. Though, we both knew what was on both of our minds.

Finally, Yami whispered against my lips, "I love you," before closing the space between us. Unlike the first kiss, our lips were pressed hard against each other, and breathing had been long forgotten. I wasn't nervous about progressing things a little bit; that much was obvious when I immediately let Yami in as he lightly nibbled on my bottom lip. Memories of a party in early December flooded my mind. Was this going to turn how it did that day-- well, night...--? I moaned when he licked the roof of my mouth, almost begging for him to repeat the action. I was denied, and he felt around other areas of my mouth. Growing bored, I searched Yami's mouth for myself. I took in every taste, every touch. I inwardly grinned, liking the feelings I felt. The taste of Yami was recognizeable, though there was something different added in. It was differnt, and I loved it all.

The need for air was growning stronger with the passing seconds until we had to finally break apart to breathe. I smiled, keeping my breathing rate under control. "Love you too, Yami," I said, breathlessly. Yami smiled back at me.

"That much is obvious," he replied. I giggled, hugging Yami and pressing a short, sweet kiss to his lips. He smirked. "Would somebody rather stand here all day, or would said person like to go home so we can continue this without any weird stares?" I blushed, understanding what he meant.

"Considering the condition of my feet, I don't think I was to continue standing here," I said, putting on a cute pout. Yami laughed, pulling away from me. I started to walk toward the opposite direction I had gone to get here, but Yami gripped my hand, keeping me from leaving. I gave him a confused look. "What's wrong? Aren't you coming?" Yami brought me closer to him and put one arm under my knees, lifting me from the ground. Flustered, I asked, "Y-Yami, what are you doing?"

Yami replied, "Well, there wasn't any way I was going to let you walk. You even said so yourself that your feet were in bad condition. How could I let myself let you walk?"

It felt... different to be held like this. Isn't the way Yami is carrying me what everyone calls 'bridal-style'? I blushed at the thought. "S-so you're going to carry me like this the whole way home? I'm not too heavy for you?"

He scoffed. "You aren't that heavy. And it's just to Malik's car," he said. I looked toward the distance, and there was the same red car I've been waiting to see for a whole six months. I smiled. The sight of it made me feel lighter inside. I put my arms around Yami's neck and layed my head against his chest, closing my eyes. "You're going to sleep now?" he asked me. I sighed and nodded. He didn't say anything about it; instead, Yami pulled me closer to him. I relaxed myself, though never letting my arms fall from their hold around Yami's neck. I smiled, finally happy things ended the way they did.

I finally opened my eyes to see where we were, and the distance was just a short run to Malik's car. Gasping happily, I managed to fall from Yami's hold on me and ran to the car. I flung open the door and jumped inside, reaching over and hugging Malik tightly. I didn't _just_ miss Yami; I missed Malik a whole lot too! With the way I was hugging Malik, I resembled a small child holding the stuffed animal they've wanted since the day they saw it in the window. "I missed you, Malik! So, so much!" I said, wrapping my arms tighter.

Malik struggled to say, "I missed you too and all, but I kind of can't breathe..." Laughing sheepishly, I let go of Malik and retreated in the backseat across from the still open door. I heard Yami enter the car after, laughing. Malik turned to look at him. "Oh, what are you laughing at?" Yami stopped laughing and shook his head. Malik then turned to me. "See? This is what I've had to deal with for six damn long months. Trust me, being alone with _him_ for six months is like Chinese Water Torture." Turning back to face front, he muttered to himself, "At least Yami isn't as bad as the two other sad bastards." I laughed. I missed Malik's humor.

For a while, it was quiet in the car, even after it had started down the road. Leaning on one hand, I stared out the window, watching cars on the other side of the street passing quickly. I shifted my eyes to the side and saw Yami had copied my action, glance and everything. I saw Yami look away from me suddenly. Somehow, I can still think everything that happened was just a dream. Maybe I really did jump and I'm in a coma. Maybe Yami really didn't leave and I forgot anything that happened within five minutes ago and six months ago. Maybe I'm still in class sleeping. What am I supposed to do about that? I mean, yeah, I confessed to Yami. That doesn't mean none of it actually happened, right? I hit myself in the head. Yuugi, stop being so negative! I told Yami my feelings, he told me his. It's as simple as that. Then why is Yami sitting so far away from me? Maybe he's thinking what I'm thinking... I turned my gaze back to the window, troubled in my thoughts. I heard shuffling, but I didn't turn my head to see what had been making the noise. Then, I felt something barely touch my leg. Still, though, I didn't look away from the window. It was at that time when three things all happened at once: whatever had been touching my leg had pressed against it harder, an arm snaked around my waist protectively, and a warm, familiar pair of lips pressed against my cheek. I blushed at all three. I finally turned my head to acknowledge Yami's obvious presence, but I was greeted by the same lips against mine. I made a small smile.

Malik sighed loudly, making me jump. "Look, I'm glad you guys finally came to terms with your 'being in love with each other' thing, and I'm happy you're finally together," he said, "but don't make out in my frigging car." I blushed darkly and slumped slightly in my seat. I glanced at Yami and smiled nervously, only to see him smiling back.

Looking back at Malik, I asked, "How did you know what we were doing?"

"For one, you just told me," he replied bluntly. I blushed darker, aware of what I had said. Malik just laughed. "I'm kidding, don't worry. Actually, I have a neat little device called a _rear-view mirror_."

Yami crossed his arms and muttered, "Yeah, and I've got a neat little device called my foot up your ass."

Malik sighed loudly and hit the steering wheel with one hand. "See, Yuugi? See what I've had to deal with? Yami has grown so lonely and pathetic while he was gone that he resorted to hanging out with Marik and Bakura too long! When was the last time he's said shit like this?" With both hands, I covered my mouth and giggled to myself. Malik scoffed. "Oh sure, _you_ think it's funny. Let's see how much you think it's funny once I lock you and Yami in a room together after he's hung around Bakura and Marik for six months."

"Hey, I saved your ass from getting us all kicked off the damn plane and potentially arrested," Yami retorted.

I raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"Okay, so," Malik said, "When I left that afternoon, I didn't know what I was doing and why I was listening to Marik of all people. So we board the plane and the gates closed so no one could get on or off, and I finally came to my senses. This flight attendant lady walks by mine and Yami's row, so I asked her politely-" At this, Yami scoffed. "-if the four of us could get off of the plane, because we made a huge mistake when we boarded the plane. She told me no one could leave, so I asked her again, making sure I was being assertive but not rude-" Yami scoffed again. "She told me 'no' again, so I stood up and threatened to beat her with a blunt object if she didn't let us off the damn plane. To prove my point, I took my shoe off and made it look like I was going to hit her with it. I wasn't actually going to, though."

Yami interrupted, "Not going to, my ass! She called for security right when you were swinging the shoe at her! I had to drag you back into the seat and hold you there so you wouldn't try to attack her again. Lucky for us, she didn't have our asses arrested." Maybe Yami _has _been hanging around those two for too long. I don't remember him cursing this much. Then again, there was probably not many people of his own age group to talk to besides those two and Malik.

For the upteenth time, Malik sighed, irritated. "And you wouldn't believe what Marik said as she was walking away!" He then tried to imitate Marik's voice as he said, "'Please excuse my two friends. Something hasn't been quite right about them upstairs. Don't worry, I'll keep them in line.' Oh, I just want to kill him some days!"

"Some days?" I asked. "Try everyday."

Malik turned toward me and pointed at me, a look of satisfaction on my face. "That's exactly what I'm talking about!"

Yami pushed Malik back to the wheel. "Pay attention to the road. You're going to get us all killed."

"Too bad Marik and Bakura aren't in the car," Malik mumbled under his breath, complying with Yami's demand.

No time later, the car finally arrived at Ryou's (Well, and Malik's too...) house. At the top of the driveway was Marik, not even looking like he was paying any attention to anything. Without slowing the car down, Malik drove toward him and slammed on the brakes inches before it hit Marik. If only Malik didn't dtop the car right then. Okay, murderous thoughts and intents out of mind, Yuugi. The door next to me jerked open to reveal a worried Ryou. His eyes widened when he saw me, and he hugged me as tight as all humanly possible. I gave a glance to Yami as if to ask for help, but he just shrugged.

"You're alive! Yuugi, you're alive!" he repeated, squeezing me tightly. I struggled to pry Ryou off of me, but with no result. It took myself and Yami to finally get Ryou off of me. He stared me cold in the eye. "I thought you were dead! I thought Yami wouldn't make it in time! Did Yami get there right when you were about to jump?! Did he see you on the ledge, you turned around in shock, slipped off the edge, and Yami rescued you?! Did-"

Yami and I simultaniously yelled, "Ryou, shut up!" He took a cautious step back.

I sighed. "No, Ryou. I was going to jump, decided it was a bad idea, got down from the ledge, started to walk back, saw a note with my name on it, picked it up and read it, it was the note me and you wrote when I told you I kissed Yami when he was asleep, but he wasn't actually asleep, so I turned around, there Yami was, stuff happened that I'm too lazy to explain, and here we are now," I explained. Ryou stared at me, dumbfounded. He opened his mouth to say something, but held his tounge and walked away. I gave Yami a short glance and shrugged. Sometimes I wonder what Ryou is thinking when he asks things like this.

Now that Yami and the other three finally returned, things have become so different than before. Well, concerning people, at least. Usually, you'd see Bakura and Ryou sitting or standing with each other, and Ryou would be practically hanging off of him. Today, the picture is _way_ different; Bakura sat alone on the front porch with an irritated, annoying glare at the ground, and get this-- Ryou wasn't with him! Instead, he sat at the end of the yard staring at the white clouds in the distance. Marik, instead of laughing maniacally about something with Bakura or trying to feel up Malik's shirt (Which, to me, has to be the weirdest and most disturbing thing I have ever witnessed in my life. Yeah, I was unfortunate enough to see that once.), he leaned against the side of the house with his arms folded smugly, mumbling to himself about something. Malik, after abandoning the car, had taken a place next to Ryou with an arm around his shoulder. Ryou leaned his head against Malik in return. I smiled upon the sight.

Suddenly, I was pushed forward slightly. A half irritated, half humorous sigh was heard from behind me. "Yuugi, I can't get out of the car if you don't move out of my way," Yami said, pushing me forward a little more. Laughing, I pulled myself out from the car and stood on the cement.

"You could have used the other door, you know, " I commented, placing my palms on my hips.

Yami shut the door behind him as he stepped out of the car. He walked toward me and wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling me closer to him. "That would be a farther walk to get to you." I perched myself on my toes and put my arms over Yami's shoulders, smiling softly.

"Yami, that has to be the cheesiest thing I've heard you say."

He pressed his lips to my forehead. "It's the _only_ cheesy thing I've said." I pouted, leaning my ear against Yami's chest. "Plus," he added, "you said some pretty cheesy things yourself today."

I closed my eyes and smiled. "Really? Like what?" I asked in curiousity.

One of Yami's hands traveled up my back; as a responce, I moaned slightly. He rested his chin on the top of my skull gently. "Remember what you said? About me being your 'dream come true'?" I scoffed and laughed. "You're just laughing because you know it's true."

I nodded. "Yeah, I know. But that's alright, isn't it?" I whispered. Yami lifted my chin, pulling me closer to him. Our faces drew closer to each other until our lips brushed softly. A faint blush crossed my face. My eyelids slid shut, and the small gap between us closed.

Not even five seconds later, Bakura interrupted by saying, "Get a friggin' room. Nobody wants to watch you two make out in the middle of the front yard." Yami pulled away and shot a harsh glare at Bakura. I gave a glance at Ryou to see him smiling widely. Malik gave me a thumbs up. I smiled at the two before unlatching my arms from Yami's neck and turning toward Bakura, glaring ever so slightly.

I expected Yami to shout something else back at Bakura before dragging me away someplace else to prevent himself from killing Bakura. Instead, the _un_expected happened. A devious smirk crossed Yami's face. "What if I were to not listen to you," he said, "and did _this_?" Upon finishing his sentence, he suddenly pulled me closer to him, bent down to my level, and licked my cheek. A dark blush painted my face. I heard Ryou squeal loudly, and even Marik was laughing. Bakura's face held a blank expression, and for once he had nothing to say. This gave me an idea.

"Yeah," I added, "and what if I decided to do this?" I pulled Yami back to me and licked his lips. Yami stared at me in surprise; I just grinned widely, feeling accomplished with myself. Marik couldn't control his laughter any longer, and Ryou was speechless. Bakura finally stood up, muttered something under his breath, and retreated inside the house. I couldn't believe what I just did. I felt so out of character, yet it felt amazing. I felt like a new person. It's all thanks to Yami.

Yami smiled at me, shaking his head. "Who knew that six months without me could turn you into such a bad boy," he commented. I smiled sheepishly, still blushing. Yeah, who knew.

Suddenly, I had an idea. "Hey, Yami! Let's go tell Grandpa you're back!" I said, grabbing Yami's hand tightly. "Come on! He'll be so excited to see you!" I put on the cutest face I could, wide eyes and everything. I knew Yami could never resist when I look cute. I don't know why it works so well, though. Oh yeah, baby panda.

He nodded. "That's a good idea," Yami agreed, putting his other hand on mine. My heart skipped a beat, as if things were the way they were before I confessed to him. Still... I couldn't help but to let myself act like this. "But," he added, "you have to let me carry you to your house."

My eyes widened. "W-what? Why?" I asked, staring at the ground. Yami lifted my face away from the ground.

"With the way your feet are, there is no possible way I couldn't carry you the whole way," he answered, smiling softly. My face lit up. Why do I even have to think about this? Yami cares about me! This is solid proof of it! Well, not that I didn't already know that. I nodded.

"Let's go."

o-o-o

"Grandpa! I'm home!" I shouted happily, entering the house. Yami followed after me, shutting the door behind him. I wrapped one hand in his and stepped closer to him. Yami smiled down at me as I rested my head on his shoulder.

A voice from upstairs called down, "Yuugi, you seem much happier!" My grandpa's voice gradually grew louder, so I knew for certain he was walking down the stairs. "What made you have a change of heart?" Grandpa finally appeared, and his eyes grew in shock. Grinning widely, he walked to Yami and hugged him tightly. I took a side-step away from them, still smiling. "Yami! Here's the cause of Yuugi's depression! How've ya been?" Yami shot me a pleading look, but all I could do was giggle to myself. Grandpa finally let go of Yami. "Yuugi and Ryou told me everything on Christmas morning. No need to explain anything!" He chuckled. "Glad to have you back, Yami. I was afraid Yuugi would have eventually commit suicide from depression!" Yami and I exchanged glances as if to remind each other not to tell Grandpa about what happened. The irony of the situation was rediculous.

"Yuugi would never do that," Yami replied. "He's not that kind of a person. Even I know that." He looked at me and winked. I blushed lightly.

My grandpa shrugged. "Who knows? Depression is capable of many things." He chuckled. "Well, I've got to get something from upstairs real quick." With that, my grandpa retreated up the stairs to retrieve whatever it was that he needed to get. There Yami and I were, still standing around like we didn't know what we were supposed to do.

The silence was akward in a way. I looked to the floor, kicking one foot back and forth slightly. I had a sudden intrest in my fingernails. I glanced at Yami out of the corner of my eye, and I saw that he was glancing around the house like he's never been here before. He then turned to me and put his arms around my waist, pulling me closer to him. I was surprised by the sudden action. I copied Yami's action shyly, as if this was the first time this has happened before.

"I missed being in your house," Yami breathing in my ear. A light shade of pink tinted my cheeks. I tiredly closed my eyes, leaning my head on Yami's chest.

In a low voice, I replied, "I missed you." I stared up at Yami, tears filling my eyes and threatening to spill over. This didn't go unnoticed, though; Yami lifted a hand to my face, pushing away the tears in my eyes with his thumb. He pressed his lips to my forehead, then the bridge of my nose, then finally on my waiting lips. I leaned into the kiss, standing on my toes. Before anything could continue, my grandpa, who was now standing at the bottom of the stairs, cleared his throat to make his presence known. Yami and I both broke apart to look at him.

"I hate to interrupt things, but," he said, "please take it upstairs, you two." I laughed nervously, releasing myself from Yami and walking to the stairs. Naturally, Yami followed. As I passed my grandpa, he whispered to me, "Congratulations on things with Yami," and held a thumb up. I smiled sheepishly before continuing up the stairs.

The walk seemed to take forever, even if it was just up about twenty stairs and down a hall. I wasn't sure why it took so long just to get to my room. What was this feeling? Why is Yami making me feel this way even now? Is this, maybe, what true love really feels like? How am I supposed to know if it is or not? Never in my life have I felt like this, so I wouldn't even know. I felt so confused. Though, I finally have someone to turn to in times like this. I finally have Yami for my own. Me and Yami. Yuugi and Yami. I liked the way that sounded.

Well, here's the door to my bedroom. Time just seemed to slow down even more. I placed a hand on the doorknob and turned it, pulling the door open. I held it open and guestered for Yami to enter first. He stood there, silently insisting I walk in first. Sighing, I obeyed. I walked across the room to my bed, sitting with my legs crossed. After shutting the door behind him (he seems to do that a lot.), Yami took a seat next to me. The room was ruled by a thick silence. It was difficult to break the silence, because I didn't know exactly what to say. There was so much I _wanted_ to say, but how can I bring myself to actually voice them to Yami? I felt an arm wrap around my shoulder comfortingly. I rested my head on Yami's shoulder.

"Yuugi," he said, breaking the silence, "please tell me what's wrong. I know something's on your mind. Please tell me." Yami's voice sounds so... sad. But why? Is he feeling the same thing I was? I didn't say anything. I didn't know how to say anything. "Yuugi, I know you aren't completely okay. You can tell me anything. Why were you about to cry?"

I shut my eyes and took a shaky breath. "Yami, I... I've never been more completely okay than I am right now. I'm happy you're back. No, I'm more than happy. I missed you so much... I didn't think you'd ever come back. I'd lost all hope when I saw the letter Bakura wrote and sent to Ryou, the note that said you were dead. I didn't know what to do. I was certain I'd never see you again after that... And now, here you are next to me." I took another deep breath, tears decorating my eyes. "If that wasn't enough, I discovered you feel the way I feel the way I feel, that you love me like I love you. I had always wanted to know if you loved me since October or November. And after what happened the night of that party, I almost knew you shared my feelings. Then... you left right when I was about to tell you my own. I was so heartbroken... I did get to tell you, though. Except, the line cut off before I could hear your reply. For six long months, all I wanted was for you to return. All I wanted was to know if you held the same feelings. Now... everything is just perfect..." Somehow, without my knowing, the tears escaped my eyes and fell down my cheeks. With his other hand, Yami wiped away the tears, even if new ones took the previous ones' place.

Yami kissed my cheek gently. "Believe me, Yuugi, in those six months I did nothing but try to find way to return. More than anything, I wanted you to know that I love you and I wasn't going to leave you alone like that again." He kissed my cheek again, getting closer to my lips. "I'm happiest around you. Your smile gives me hope. I hate to see you upset." He kissed the corner of my lips. "More than anything, I love you. I don't want anything to come between that." I turned my head, allowing Yami's lips to be placed lightly on my own. For a while, we stayed like that. I didn't move, and neither did he. There was no need to. This was the most perfect moment yet for me. The arm around my shoulder slid down to the middle in my back, while the other hand was wrapped securely in my own. All of my emotions was poured into this one kiss. I wanted to make those emotions known to Yami, whether he knows them or not.

A minute or two later, Yami and I pulled away unwilingly. Staring into his eyes, I finally _did_ know what he was thinking. More than anything in the world, I wished this moment would last forever. I could live my whole life wrapped in Yami's arms and I wouldn't be complaining. Life is perfect as it is. Why ruin it? I placed another kiss on Yami's lips, this one short and sweet. I smiled softly. "I love you, Yami."

He mirrored my expression. "I love you too, Yuugi." Yes. Perfect.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Kurisuten: -slumped over desk- You know how at the beginning of a fanfic, all you want to do it type and update the story as fast as you can, then toward the end you start getting lazier and lazier?

Kishichi: -pats back- It's all okay, Kurisuten.

Kurisuten: On a happier note, all that's left of the epilouge and the after word. I finally finished my story. I feel so accomplished. I don't really like the beginning of the fic much, though. It has too many plot holes.

Kishichi: It's called the development of the writer.

Kurisuten: If you say so. Here's a question for this chapter. **Now that Yami and Yuugi are finally together, what do you think they're feeling now as opposed to before they knew they loved each other?** Lame question, but I stayed up all night to type this and I'm tired.

Kishichi: You're a dedicated person, Kurisuten.

Kurisuten: Thanks. -waves weakily- Oyasumi nasai, minna-san. -yawns-

Kishichi: Good night, everyone. -waves-


	22. Epilouge

**(OH MY KURA! THIS WAS A BITCH TO TYPE! I PROMISED IT WOULDN'T TAKE TWO WEEKS TO UPLOAD! GAAAAAH I AM SOOOO SOSOSOSOSO SORRY! TT3TT**

**Anyway, I guess a good explination is well needed. I've been pretty busy lately, too. I haven't just been lazy. XD It'll take forever to type out, so just forgive me, please! T.T)**

Phew, oh my gosh.... This is the last chapter, isn't it? This is really the end of the whole story? It doesn't feel finished though! Yet, I feel extremely estatic because you all loved it so much! I didn't expect ANYBODY to read this! (And then I realized how popular Puzzleshipping was...... XD) I feel honored that this was read at all! This is why I loved you all. XD

That's right! Since this is the epilouge, I dropped Kishichi for a while. I sort of didn't want to type his two sense in this. (It's "two sense", not "two cents", right?) He'll live. Maybe that's why I have such a headache...... Maybe he's mad I didn't include him in the A/N's, so he's kicking my brain. XD (He lives inside of my head, you see? He's sort of like my hikari. XD)

I really started typing this a week after I posted the other one.... It's just that it was my last week of school before I got two weeks off from school. And since Friday I've had a horrible addiction to Guitar Hero.... And my arm hurts a lot from pressing the buttons.... (Though I did beat the most difficult song EVER in the game in medium! -peace-) So I got lazy. Hope you guys don't mind much...... XD But I mean, I've been doing other stuff, too. Like, I went to the friggin mall. And got brownies. (My friend fell over when he heard about the "buy 3, get 1 free" deal. I CAN'T GET OVER IT!) ...Yeah, I've just been lazy. ^^;

Anyway, you all know the disclaimer! I hope you like the very last chapter of "Everything"! ^-^

**(P.S. This is a very special chapter! Review telling what's so special about it! Besides that it's the last chapter, I mean. It's got a very special element added to it! Hope you find it! ....You better find it. It's in plain sight.)**

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

I feel great. I feel better than great. Everything about how I feel is just great. I love it. I love this feeling. Never, ever, in my life have I felt any better than this. Nothing could ruin this. Nothing could make it better. Things are absolutely perfect how they are.

But no need to repeat myself.

Somehow, even though he _knew_ I would have rather stayed at his house and caught things up with his grandpa after a good six months, he was able to drag me to my house and convinced me to let him sleep over here. He said something about how I 'haven't been there in a long time' and I 'needed to become refamiliar with my own living environment'. (Believe me, I have no clue what he was thinking when he said that.) As reluctant as I was, I couldn't refuse. He's just so.... cute! There's a lot of other things I could call him, but I think 'cute' will do for now. And so, here I am, in my own home, on my own couch, with my own baby angel curled up beside me.

Oh, right, I have to actually _tell_ you who I'm talking about. (I'm new to this narrating thing, you'll have to excuse me.)

It was because of him I had _any_ reason to return here to this hellhole of a city. I actually found reason to do anything, for that matter. He was my first real friend in a long time, my first lover. As cheesy as that sounds, it's completely true. From-the-bottom-of-my-heart true. And I guess every relationship is even a little bit cheesy, as far as I know. This is a whole new feeling to me, and I'm still trying to get myself used to it. But honestly, I can say it's the best damn feeling I have ever felt. Because of him, I was able to encounter this emotion in the first place. I've found two things because of him also; I've found the feelings I've been missing for several years now, and... I've found the missing piece of myself.

This person, the one that means the most that anyone ever could to me, is Yuugi Mutou.

The sun finally set, a mixed color of orange and indigo spilling in the sky. Streetlamps had barely begun to flicker on, and the miniscule population outside had diminished to zero. My guess, from the scene beyond the window, was that it was about eight o' clock. Yet, despite how early it was, Yuugi was sleepily snuggled against my shoulder, his appearance similar to a kitten. His eyelids were half shut, and a tired smile displayed on his lips. His hand and my own were entertwined with each other, making it difficult to know whos hand belonged to who. My other arm was wrapped around his waist, while his arm was crossed over my chest with his hand placed softly on the shoulder farthest from him. His head layed on my shoulder as if it was a pillow. His knees were brought up slightly to his chest, though they were mostly resting against my leg more than anything. I wasn't sure how long we had been this way, but I had no intention of moving anytime soon anyway. A content sigh escaped my lungs. No thoughts of murdering those two dumbasses, Bakura and Marik, could ever be better than this.

A soft, tired moan came from Yuugi as he cuddled closer to me. As a result, I pulled him closer to me. "Hey, Yami," he mumbled quietly, "can I ask you something?" He looked up at me, still half-lidded. I smiled, pressing my lips to his forehead.

"Of course," I replied. "What do you want to ask?"

Yuugi once again moved back to his previous position, slightly sliding the hand on my shoulder downward. "What do you like most about me?" I blinked, staring at Yuugi. What? Why was he asking me this? I wasn't reluctant to answer, but... I was curious.

I pulled Yuugi closer to me. "Well, there's more than one thing I like most about you. What do I do about that?"

"What's one thing, then?"

Playfully, I poked him in the ribs, earning a small and cute giggle in return. "This question is too hard for me to answer! I couldn't possibly pick just one thing." I looked to the ceiling, thinking of something that would satisfy Yuugi. There wasn't just one thing, though. I liked his smile, eyes, touch, presence, all of that. There had to be one word that could sum up all of that... "Hmm... Well, if I have to pick just one thing, it'd be your personality. It's one of the many things that makes you so irresistable."

He giggled again. "Oh, stop it." Yuugi then sighed to himself and relaxed himself a bit more, still managing to bring himself even closer to me. With the hand laced with his, I played with his fingers absentmindedly.

"Okay, Yuugi," I said, "what about you? What do _you_ like most about _me_?"

There was a sudden silence from Yuugi. I could only imagine what was going through his mind at this moment. Just what could he be thinking right now? Was this that difficult to answer for him? What does he like about me so much? Then, finally, he spoke. "Yami? Do you want to know now?"

I unlatched my arm from his waist and brought it to his chin, tilting it toward me with only a finger. Our lips naturally guided themselves to each other, as if they were opposite ends of a magnet. With no hesitation, my tounge found its way into Yuugi's mouth. A surprised moan escaped from his mouth, the same moan I had somehow grown attached to. Just to tease him, I suddenly pulled away, much to his disappointment. I replied to his earlier statement with, "Yes, I'd like to know the answer now."

Yuugi smiled. He untangled his hand from mine and wrapped both arms around my shoulders, swinging his legs over mine. He replaced his head on my shoulder again, closing his eyes. "You want to know what I like most about you?"

I put my arms around Yuugi's waist. "I think I do."

Again, he lifted his head and leaned toward me, placing a soft kiss against my cheek. He barely pulled away, his lips still brushing slightly against my face. In a low whisper, he answered me.

"Everything."

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Yeah, it's short, but give me a break! It's the epilouge! And hey, you've gotta admit, that was a cute ending! Plus, him breaking the fourth wall is just hilarious. XD

Yup! It's finally over! After four months, it's over! Wow, over twenty chapters in four months. Most fanfic writers I know get barely eighteen chapters done in a span of half a year! Don't yell or rant at me about that comment! *holds Bakura in front of me as a shield*

Anyway, wanna know the question for this? I give you... no question! Instead, **you guys get to ask me questions!** Since the next chapter is the afterword, I'm going to take the time to answer any questions you have about this story! This is your chance to ask me ANYTHING about the story! Anything at all! If it pertains to the story, I'll sure as hell answer it! XD Although, since I'm well aware of the huge plot hole of Yami's past, I'm already planning on answering that. No need to waste anytime asking that. ^^ I have two rules. One, **it has to be about the story in some way.** And two, **you can ask two questions and that's it!** ...Yup, that's it! XD And yes, you can ask if there'll be a sequal, if you want to know.

Oh, and if you're reading this Shecka, no, you can't ask why there was no smut. You friggin know why I didn't type any smut. XD

I honestly hope you guys liked this story, and I hope to see you in the reviews of my future fanfics! Bye-bye, lovely people! ^-^

(Kishichi: Man, she didn't even include me in this! )


	23. IMPORTANT NOTICE

Hey, guys. It's been a while since I've last touched this story. It's been over for some time, but I've decided something. I recently reread this, to see what kind of asshattery I wrote, and... This is unacceptable for me. I also looked through some of the reviews, and they helped me with this decision.

I am rewriting this story. Completely. All 22 chapters of it.

That's right. I could have just left this alone and said "I'll just write some new stories to prove how much better I write now." But no, I cannot simply leave this anymore. I felt that there were way too many plotholes, too much out-of-characterness, and overall just bad. If you disagree, that's fine. But I'm still rewriting it either way.

Now, let me just tell you what I'm going to do with this, specifically. First of all, the whole first chapter? Gone. None of it is staying. Since that's out of the way, let's go over the smaller changes I'm making. I know that you guys were confused with Yami's backstory and whatnot. Well, guess what. Consider it fixed. I know that you guys were confused about Yami, Bakura, Marik, and Malik leaving. That whole thing, I'm fixing that to make much, _much_ more sense (I got confused myself as I read it.). There's a few other things as well that I'm fixing, so yeah.

I'm not changing everything, though. With my rewriting process, I'm going to read over the old chapter and do one of three things. Either one, I'm going to completely rewrite it; two, I'm just going to change one or two things and that's all; or three, just copy and paste what I'm satisfied with. There were a few things that I was okay with, but not much. Therefore, you guys are pretty much getting a completely new story. Awesome, huh?

The Author Notes at the beginning and end of the chapters, those are gone as well. I... I just can't even. No ANs. If you liked those, sorry.

I may or may not change the chapter names as well. I'm not sure.

Now then. You guys are going to get a part in this rewriting. If there's anything you would like changed, anything you were confused about, or just anything you think should be added in, review this telling me. I will not guarantee that it will be used/changed, but if it can be put in without altering what I have in mind then it will be. Besides, I would like some feedback, some honest feedback. We've all grown, I'm pretty sure that we can agree that this story... Not the best. At all.

If you already like this story and don't want it changed... First of all, I feel sorry for you. Only half kidding. If you do like it already, don't worry, it'll take me a while to rewrite it anyway. I'm going to rewrite everything and post it all at once. Or one chapter a week, tell me which I should do. But nothing is being posted until everything is done. However, once it starts getting posted, **this version will be deleted.** Nothing will change my mind about that, it's going to happen.

It'll be a while before that happens, so calm down.

That is all. Look forward to the new and improved "Everything". It might come out sooner than later. Watch out for it.

Signing out.


End file.
